Shadows of Pride
by Wolves Run Free
Summary: Having saved Amestris from Father and fully regained their bodies, Ed and Al set off to Xing to research alkahestry with a few familiar faces. However, Ed has different motives to research alkahestry, since Pride is starting to take control of Ed's body. As Ed struggles to hide what's wrong, chaos ensues. Based on FMA:B. Homunculus!Ed
1. Chapter 1

**-Authors Note-**

**Hey everyone! This is my first Fullmetal Alchemist fanfiction, and it takes place during the Brotherhood anime. There are some parts directly from the anime in the first chapter, so I used the subbed version of the anime to write some of those because it was easier to get the dialogue right. I, of course, hold no claim whatsoever to those parts or FMA:B, so just the plotline and free writing are mine. This isn't based off of Bluebird's Illusion at all, by the way. **

**At the moment, for those who are curious, the pairings will be a little of Lan FanxLing and MayxAl, however this fanfiction probably won't be filled with too much romance.**

**The cover is made by the wonderful ShrodingrsCat on Deviantart~**

**Oh, and this is rated T for language and violence. Thanks for reading!**

* * *

**Chapter One**

Ed stood in the white void, a large black doorway with peculiar patterns behind him and a pure white figure with one skin-colored leg sitting across from him.

"You're here to bring back your brother, aren't you?" The white figure said in what seemed like multiple voices at once, facing Ed. "But how are you going to pull a whole person out of here? What price will you pay? Will you offer your body?"

Ed smirked. "I've got your price right here. This huge thing," he continued, pointing hand at the huge doorway behind him with circles and writing on it. The white being stared at him, mouth open a little, and Ed's smirk grew bigger. "This is_ my_ gateway of truth. Which means, it's up to me how I use it. Am I wrong?"

Truth grinned and giggled before placing a hand on its forehead. "Is that what it's come to? Haha, are you sure about this? If you lose your gateway, you'll never be able to use alchemy again. Who knows, you might _need_ it." The last part sounded almost smug, but Ed just turned to look at the large gate.

"You're right. It's true, everything beyond this gateway lies everything about alchemy. However, I've been manipulated because of it. After having been shown the so-called truth, I was convinced I could solve everything with alchemy. But I was wrong. That's just arrogance."

"You would lower yourself to become just a normal person, unable to use alchemy?"

"Lower myself? I've been just a person from the start. An insignificant human, who couldn't save a little girl who had been turned into a Chimera."

"Hmmm. Well, maybe we're both wrong there, Edward Elric. You're not just a normal person, no matter what you do." Truth continued, pointing at Edward. "You're sure you're okay with it?"

Ed kept looking at the gate, remembering all of the people who had wished for his brother's and his success. Then he turned to Truth, smiling. "Even without alchemy, I still have everyone dear to me."

Truth grinned. "That's the right answer, alchemist. You have beaten me… I just hope you have no regrets. Take it with you. All of it!"

Ed clapped his hands and placed them on the gateway, which dissolved into blue sparks. Truth dissolved as well, first his left leg crumbling into nothing before his natural body followed. "The back door is over there… Edward Elric."

Al's body and soul –combined at last after countless years- came into view, his long hair covering one eye as he looked up as his brother approached him. Ed offered his hands to Al, who shakily stood up and grasped them.

"That was a crazy thing to do." Ed reprimanded, but there was just warmth in his voice.

"You too, brother."

The gates creaked open, and Ed looked down at Al. "Now, let's go home. Together."

"Mm-hmm."

Al and Ed stepped into the light.

Al's eyes opened slowly as he look up at his older brother, who smiled at him. As everyone crowded around the two brothers, laughter was heard and tears were shed. May threw herself into Al's arms, crying apologies for what she had done while Al comforted her.

Finally, Al pulled the black coat that had been given to him around his body, and shakily walked over to his brother. "Brother… we did it! We got both my body and yours back!"

Ed smiled at his little brother. "Well, only half of what I lost. But it's fine. My automail leg doesn't bother me as much as the arm did."

"What are you talking about, brother? Your left leg…. It's made of flesh!"

Slowly, Edward looked down. A small tear in his left pants leg showed not iron, but skin. When had Truth given his leg back? An uneasy feeling settled over Edward, but he pushed it aside. Truth had said take it all, so maybe the leg was part of that. But… what had Truth said that seemed off?

"_If you lose your gateway, you'll never be able to use alchemy again. Who knows, you might __**need**__ it."_

"_Hmmm. Well, maybe we're both wrong there, Edward Elric. You're not just a normal person, no matter what you do."_

"_You have beaten me… I just hope you have no regrets."_

Ed swallowed once, and put on a mask of innocence to hide the bad feeling rising up. "I guess you're right, Al." He said with a false grin. "That bastard Truth must have felt that I'd given up enough."

Al studied his brother, and then smiled as he turned back to everyone. Hoenheim left after making sure Al was alright, and Ling and Lan Fan also took off to grieve for Fu. Ed stood apart, watching as he thought. Then, his actions unnoticed, he picked up some splintered glass and cut his thumb with it, watching blood drip out from the cut. Barely a second later, red light gleamed and the cut healed immediately.

But... but that was _impossible._ That reaction was almost like the Homunculus' healing skills, or the light of a Philosopher Stone.

Ed cussed under his breath. How could this have happened? "Damn it!" He hissed, careful to keep his voice down. What had Pride done to him during their fight earlier?

* * *

**-Sixty minutes ago—-**

"Brother!"

Izumi and Roy turned at the sound of Al's alarmed voice, noticing that the homunculus, Pride, had wrapped a strand of his shadow around the Fullmetal Alchemist's wrist.

"Al! Go on ahead!" Edward yelled, glaring at the smallest Homunculus. "He appears to want something with me," Edward continued, watching as Pride covered half of his face with his hand and panted, glaring at Edward.

Izumi studied Ed, but realized that if Father weren't stopped, countless lives would be lost, and then turned to Al. "Al, let's go! Don't let yourself be beaten, Ed!"

"Right!" Ed shouted.

Alchemical sparks flew, and Izumi, Roy, Al, and May all ascended towards ground level on alchemical structures, Izumi and Roy riding on a large palm of earth and Ed and May just using a square-shaped platform.

Ed glanced over his shoulder as they left, then focused all of his attention on Pride, who glared upwards at the figures who had already left. "Greed, it's pathetic that you would throw away your honor as a Homunculus."

Edward narrowed his eyes, deciding to attempt to throw Pride off of his attack a little. "Why are you guys so obedient to that Father of yours?" He said, his arm shaking as he tried to pull it from the shadow's grasp.

Pride narrowed the eye that could be seen. "What a senseless question to ask." He said in his creepy voice, eyes fixed on the man in front of him. "It's only natural that we would obey our own father, isn't it?"

"Ha! You're the one who's senseless." Edward spat. "Only natural, you say? You're just a mind-numbed punk who doesn't try to think for himself!"

Edward's reply was met with a cold stare, and the shadows that had wrapped around Ed's arms picked him up off of the ground and threw him back down. Ed glared up at Pride from the ground, blood dripping from his cheek. "I don't get it. Why are you his willing lapdog?" Pride stiffened, and Ed continued. "You've been worn as ragged as you are, and you don't even care."

Pride's eyes widened as he pictured Father's leaving him without a glance before regaining his composure. "So what? Please don't go applying your human sensibilities on us Homunculi!" He removed his hand where the skin was no longer there, just the Philosopher's Stone that could be seen for a second before Pride's shadows covered it, giving him a creepy appearance. More shadows pinned Ed to the floor, digging into his skin on his arms, legs, and face as Ed yelled in pain. Pride jumped down, examining the human in front of him.

"This container won't last much longer. However, since you, like my father, are of Hohenheim's blood, we are virtually brothers." Ed gasped in pain, glaring up at Pride. "Edward Elric, give me your container—your body—to me!"

The shadows lunged forwards, wrapping around Ed's body as Pride's being clashed against Ed's. Ed yelled again, pain filling every inch of his body as the Homunculus fought for control over it.

"You can't do that, Pride." A voice, amused and cold, cut into the battle, and Pride screeched in surprise.

"Kimbley! How… how are you able to stop me? You shouldn't be able to…!" Pride shouted while being pushed away by Ed.

"Please. This torrent of pain? It's like music to my ears! No, Pride, you just can't do it. You mock humans when you're winning, but the second you think you'll lose, you run towards a human body, all the while mocking another Homunculus for _lowering_ themselves? You sicken me." Kimbley said, and Pride's eyes widened.

"You fool! I've already entered Ed's body and started taking it over… do you have _any_ idea of what could happen?! Ed would take control of the new body that I've started to modify for me!" Pride screamed, and Ed attacked him again, taking the control back over his body. "This could kill us both!"

"Then you should have thought of that before, Pride!" Kimbley said cruelly, and Pride screamed again as Edward's figure appeared. "How did he….? No!" Ed's hand grabbed at Pride, and Pride's eye widened. "No! No! NOOOO!"

Kimbley waved, vanishing again with a smirk. Edward had won.

Outside of the battle of consciousness, Pride's body crumbled away to nothing, the shadows slipping into a shadow.

Ed's shadow, to be precise.

Ed gasped in pain before sitting up and studying Pride's empty clothes. "Opening the Portal must have taken its toll just in time," he said, looking up. "Well, that's one problem done with…I'll have to ask forgiveness for what happened to Selim from Mrs. Bradley later." Ed took a breath, and then tightened his fists. "Now I just have one bastard's butt left to kick. Wait for me, Al!"

* * *

**-Two weeks Later-**

"Al, are you alright? We can rest a little." Ed offered to his brother who had once again paused to rest on his crutches.

"No, I'm fine. I didn't realize how weak my muscles became in my absence." Al apologized, his hair cut into the short fashion he preferred. He had debated over keeping his hair semi-long like his brother, but eventually he decided that he liked it better short without having to tie it up. "You can always go ahead, brother."

"No way, Al. We started this journey together, and we'll finish it together, okay?" Ed said, leaning against a fencepost. "You can take as much time as you want; we've already been waiting for five years, what's a few more hours?"

Al smiled at him, and Ed felt a twinge of regret. _I can't be completely sure about this,_ Ed thought darkly, starting to walk again and keeping an eye on his brother if he needed any help. _But I don't think Pride died. Could he still be lurking inside me, like how Greed and Ling shared bodies? If so, how can I get rid of him without alchemy? _

"Brother?"

Al, who kept looking straight ahead as he stumbled forwards, pulled Ed out of his thoughts. "We've accomplished what we were aiming for. What… what do you think we should do now?"

"I don't know. There's plenty of the world to see, after all. I've resigned from military service, though, so we don't have to do what that damn new General wants us to." Ed replied. _And I plan to research how to get rid of my newest problem,_ he added silently.

"Mustang wasn't that bad. I'll miss seeing Riza and the others, after all." Al said thoughtfully. "The chimeras, Jerso and Zampano, insisted I help them try and get their original bodies back. I was thinking of going to Xing, to research how to help them. After, if we learn that…"

"Girls like Nina could be cured instead of killed or treated as lab rats." Ed finished the thought. "Yeah. That does sound like a great idea." Ed snuck a look at his little brother and grinned. "Hey, you didn't happen to decide on Xing because of your new girlfriend, right?"

Al turned red, and waved his hands in front of his face. "Girlfriend? No way, May is just a friend!" He protested.

"Yeah right, you should see your face, it's turning red!" Ed laughed. "Who knows, maybe you'll come back as a prince of Xing!"

"Brother, take it back! You're so mean!" Al yelled, swatting a cane at Ed, who dodged.

"Okay, okay, sorry, Al!" Ed said with a grin, the dark thoughts that had flooded his mind vanishing for the moment. "You don't have to go right away, do you? We have so many people to say goodbye and thank here first."

"Yeah." Al sobered up a little, and then smiled. "Hey, Ed?"

"Hmmm?"

"Why not come to Xing with me? You no longer have automail to hurt you, after all. Maybe you could learn alkahestry instead of alchemy." Al suggested, the wind blowing over the valley of Resembool as the sun started to slowly dip down, painting the grass and sheep in gentle hues.

Ed gave a startled glance to his brother, and then laughed. "Yeah, actually. That might be worth looking into. Alkahestry might actually be a solution to my problems."

"Problems? You mean being unable to transmute anything?" Al asked curiously.

"Yeah, Al. What else?" Ed said, looking away from his brother's eyes by focusing on Al's hair instead of his face.

_Is something wrong with brother?_ Al wondered, but he decided to ignore it. "Oh look! It's home!"

"You mean Winry's house?" Ed asked, looking ahead eagerly. "You're right!"

"Brother, we're going to make Winry cry again, aren't we." Al said with a small, teasing sigh.

Ed grinned. "She had promised she would when we were restored."

"Yeah…" Al cast a sly glance at his brother and decided for a little revenge. "You know, brother, with your automail gone, you don't have any good excuse as to why you go see Winry so often."

"Al… are you hinting I _purposefully _broke my automail so I could go see Winry?" Ed said, glowering at the innocently smiling boy.

"Why, yes, brother. Until you got the courage to ask Winry to marry you, right?"

Ed slowly stared at his brother, blood rushing into his cheeks as he turned absolutely pink. "That's not it at all! She's just **our** childhood friend, right? There's nothing else between us!"

Al was saved from a reply by Den barking. The black-and-white dog was whining nervously at Al, and footsteps thudded inside the house before Winry raced out. "Ed! Al!" She stared at them for a moment, and then tears welled up in her eyes. "Welcome back!" She wailed, throwing herself onto the two brothers. Since Al was strill fail, he tumbled backwards, dragging Ed and Winry down with him, where they all landed in a small pile and started to laugh like they hadn't done in years. That night they all had stew and apple pie, to the boys' delight, and Winry, Al, Ed, and Pinako, laughed and talked into the night.

When everyone finally went to sleep, Al smiled at Ed. "I still can't get over how warm everything is… and how nice it is to finally sleep. Thank you, brother."

Ed laughed. "What are you talking about, Al? You saved my life in the fight against Father, after all. If anything, you're the one who gets the credit, since the whole mess was my fault."

"Brother, we don't need to argue about whose fault it was _after_ everything was solved, do we?" Al complained.

Ed grinned, and then looked over at Al's bed. "No. Hey Al... there's something I need to tell you-" His voice cut off as he saw Al's chest moving slowly up and down, his eyes sealed shut. "Oh. You're asleep."

Ed lay in bed, studying the ceiling. He stayed that way until the early hours of dawn, worries and doubts plaguing him until he fell into a light and disturbed sleep.

* * *

**I wanted to mention here that the next chapters will probably be longer. I don't know how long it will take to update this, but I would say expect once a week for now. Sorry if there are a few spelling and grammar errors!**

**Please R & R, all who do add one inch to Ed's height, and you know he needs every inch he can get. [Despite being taller than Winry now]**

**Ed: Who are you calling so small a microscope of the highest levels are needed just to see him, huh?!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey everyone, thanks for reading chapter two! Now I finally get to move onto the actual plot with the true nature of Ed's new problems coming into a bit more light. I decided to actually release this chapter a bit early this week, but only by a day or two.**

** Zampano and Jerso were never characters I paid a bunch of attention to, so please excuse any OOC for those two. Oh, and there's also a lot of time skips this chapter; sorry, it's necessary for traveling across the giant desert in one chapter.**

**Thanks for reading!**

**As always, I don't own FMA:B **

* * *

Ed splashed the cold water onto his face, Winry and his brother's voices drifting in through the closed bathroom door. Edward sighed, tying his medium-length golden hair back into a ponytail. He needed more sleep. Last night had been terrible; he had been awake for hours, and he couldn't even recall when exactly he woke up; all he recalled was he had been unable to go back to sleep afterwards.

"I'm probably worried over nothing," Ed mused, staring out the window. "But then again, my instincts haven't been too far off their mark before. I just hope I can get rid of these problems soon."

"**Get rid of your problems?"** An eerie voice echoed in the room, and Ed whirled around, eyes widening. The room had gone pitch black. Eyes and jagged grins opened in the shadows, and Ed clenched his fists, eyes going to the door where he could still hear Al laughing.

"Yeah, that's right, you little bastard." Ed said stiffly, forcing all panic out of his voice. "So tell me; where have you been hiding?"

"**Hiding?"** Selim's normal voice was gone, the strange dark and metallic tone the only thing left. **"Haven't you noticed by now, alchemy protégée? All of these shadows… they're connected directly to their container."**

Ed swallowed. With a clenched jaw, he forced himself to look down. His shadow stretched in every direction of the room, him being the epicenter of it all. "No… Selim, you brat! How do I fix this?"

"**You think I would tell you, Fullmetal Alchemist? Besides… you're not talking to Selim."**

A shiver ran up Ed's spine, and he angrily glared at the shadows right in front of him. "No? Why, are you shedding that name because it hurts to think about your fake family?!"

At first, there was no reply. And then, finally the reply came, and Ed stiffened at the words. **"Selim's presence is still here, but he is extraordinarily weak. He will never be strong enough to control your body, thanks to… complications he ran into trying to achieve what he wanted."**

"No? Then what the hell are you?" Ed demanded, his temporary relief replaced by wariness.

"**I am what's left, being completely Pride. I wouldn't worry too much; you'll never hear me like you might Selim, but I'll be there. Influencing you more and more, until you accept the inevitable. You will be the next owner of the name Pride, Edward Elric."**

"Then why do I hear you now?" Yelled Ed. "You actually think I would allow-"

A knock cut off Ed before he could finish, and the eyes in the shadows all turned towards the door. The doorknob rattled, and Al's voice crept under the door into the room. "Brother? Is something wrong?"

Ed's eyes widened, and he whirled to the shadows, which leered at him. "Al… I'm fine. Just… I'll be out in ten minutes."

"But brother, it's time to get up _now._ Do you expect to sleep all day?" Al replied, and Ed blinked.

"….Sleep?"

Ed's golden eyes flicked open, and he sat up, running a hand through bed-head hair and glancing at his brother, who had already dressed for the day. "…" Ed stared at his lap for a moment, lost in thought.

"Brother?"  
"...yeah, Al?"

"You've been acting strange for a while now. Is something wrong?" Al asked worriedly, looking into his brother's golden eyes with his green ones.

"….no." Ed said, pushing himself off of the bed and stretching. "Come on, Al, let's go get breakfast. Where are your crutches? I can get them for you." Ed offered, moving faster now.

Al shrugged. "Fine, brother, but if you're worried, you_ can_ talk to me."

"…I know, Al." Ed said awkwardly, dressing into his normal leather pants and shirt, but leaving the two jackets off. Scars could be seen on his right shoulder, and some bolts were still where the automail had started.

"Brother, you'll need surgery to remove those from your shoulder and leg." Al pointed out, frowning.

Ed glared at his brother as he tied his hair up. "Automail limbs have caused me enough trouble. I don't need to…"

"Brother, they'll burn you in the desert."

"...fair enough," Ed said, recalling the painful experience of venturing out in the desert with automail when he had been taken to see Maria Ross.

Breakfast was uneventful, Ed staring out the window and mechanically eating. Al and Winry exchanged glances, and then Winry poked Ed's shoulder.

"Hey, Edward..." She said sternly.

Ed turned and looked at her. "What is it?"

"Drink the milk."

Ed twitched. With a glare filled with disgust, he glared at the offending glass of white liquid. "I don't want to."

"Brother…"

"Why the hell would anyone want to drink something that a cow secreted, anyways?!" Ed said stubbornly, but everyone kept pointedly staring at him.

"You have to drink it…" Al started.

"…or you'll never grow." Winry finished.

"I'M TALLER THAN BOTH OF YOU!" Ed yelled, snapping out of his daze. "I _told_ you already, it was the heavy automail!"

Everyone shook his or her head, relieved Ed was back to normal. "….right, suuure."

After breakfast, Winry and Pinako cleaned up the dishes, and Ed took Al out to exercise. The air contained a hint of frost, proof that the seasons were shifting. Ed helped Al along the dirt road, and they visited their old home, which was being concealed by nature again, although Ed and Al decided that it wouldn't be terrible to try and rebuild it when they returned. After all, after their studies in Xing, there would be no reason or temptation to turn back from their journey, since it would probably be over after Xing in that aspect. They had their bodies back, after all.

Afterwards, they visited Trisha and Hoenheim's graves, although the later was freshly dug. They stayed there until dusk, talking until the sun had vanished below the horizon about their plans for the future.

It was only when a light flashed out over the hills from their current home that they headed back.

* * *

Selim was stuck. It was a humiliating experience, to say the least, mostly because at first he screamed and actually lowered himself to rant at Kimbley for a good day or so. It was hard to tell, exactly, because of where Selim was; the torrent of souls that resided in the Philosopher's Stone surrounded him, acting as his prison.

"…I'm still to weak to even catch _his_ attention," Selim said in disgust and disdain thinking of the golden-eyed alchemist that he had failed to defeat. "Even then, I don't know if I can take over this container any more… urgh!" He gasped, pressing his hand to his forehead in pain, his purple eyes narrowed in concentration. After a moment, he slowly stood again, studying the souls around him to see if he could spot the Crimson Alchemist anywhere.

"…" Selim dropped back to the 'ground' that existed underneath him. "I wonder… if Mrs. Bradley misses me." He mused, resting his chin on his palm. "I guess I won't be able to ever find out, unless I get powerful enough to see and hear what this body is doing and convince Edward Elric to ask her."

Selim considered tapping out a Morse code S.O.S, but there was nothing to tap against nor a person to hear it and help him. Since Edward's body was still functioning, that could only mean one thing; Father had failed. It irked Selim to no end that he had to admit it, but there was no other explanation. Not to mention his powers and very identity of Pride were fading away, seeping into the body as the Philosopher's Stone containing the sin settled into its new owner. At least Selim would keep his personality, since he had limited access to it since he shared the same body.

"I bet my foolish siblings didn't make it." Pride said tiredly, refusing to admit to himself that the reason he was sitting was how weak he felt. "At least I survived. That shows my superiority as the eldest, doesn't it?"

The depressing silence was the only thing to answer Selim, and he sighed. "Despite this accomplishment, I can't feel any satisfaction from it. I can't believe that Kimbley; I saved his pathetic life and he repays me by trapping me inside my new container, with no way to escape. That just shows why humans are less superior than homunculi, I guess." Selim stared into the depths of the swirling red vortex around him and sighed. "But Gluttony might join me later on. Why didn't I eat Envy or Lust when I had the chance? Gluttony may be superior than a human, but I find him tiresome to converse with."

Selim narrowed his cold eyes again, lost in his thoughts in the silence of his prison. He would bide his time and at least gain access to see what was going on to assess the situation, in the very least.

* * *

The train whistled, and Al, Ed, Zampano, and Jerso hopped off, landing on the platform of Yous Well, the mining town closest to the desert to the East, where Xing was located. "Where do we locate camels?" Inquired Al, looking at his brother.

"No worries," Ed said breezily. "I called up a few favors and got five camels saddled and ready for us at the edge of town."

"Five? Don't we only need four?" Jerso, the frog chimera, questioned as he fastened a cloak over his clothes.

Ed shook his head, looking around. "No, trips through the desert take a good chunk of time and we need a camel to solely carry water and food as well as other previsions." Ed took a breath, and purposefully strode towards the outskirts of town. "Right. Let's do this, Al!"

The chimeras watched the two brothers talking about methods to get over the desert, and Zampano, the boar chimera, grinned. "Let's see if we can find the right method to proudly return to our families, Jerso. After all, Al had it worse than us and he's normal again. That has to mean something, right?"

"Yeah." Jerso grunted, watching them. "Do you know what happened to Heinkel and Darius?" He said, referring to the other two chimeras they had used to work with.

"They decided to go with Yoki and explore Amestris. Last I heard, they were with the circus." Zampano said, plodding after Ed and Al.

"It's strange that they don't want their original bodies back."

"Mmmm. If we discover a way, we'll be sure to let them know." Zampano said, looking at Jerso. He cleaned his glasses before perching them on his nose again, and the two fell into silence as they headed out towards the desert.

* * *

"We're lucky that we have our bodies back," Ed mused, the camel's body swaying back and forth. "I would be frying myself, and you would probably have filled up with sand and sunk, if I know anything about the armor you used to have been."

"Haha, yeah." Al agreed, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. "I'm thankful for that; I'm not sure how long it would take to cross the desert, and you being foul-tempered and weak the whole time would have been an issue."

"We wouldn't have been willing to dig you up every minutes, either." Jerso joked, hand shading his eyes as the camel groaned under his weight.

"I was never foul-tempered! If that stupid Prince and little girl can do this, so can I. In fact, I won't be as pathetic and collapse after finally crossing this giant desert!" Snapped Ed, eye twitching as he glowed at Ed with a clenched fist.

Al laughed. "Aw, don't be so prideful, Ed. You know it's the truth."

_Prideful…. _

_Truth…_

Ed became serious immediately and flicked the reins, making the camel pick up its pace to take the lead instead of walking side by side with Al's transportation. "Yeah. Come on, I want to cover some ground before night."

The others watched the teenager's behavior with some confusion. "I swear, he's acting like a moody teenage girl," Zampano muttered under his breath, and Jerso chuckled at the small joke.

"Maybe brother's just upset at being unable to say goodbye to Winry. She had a call in Rush Valley the night before we left while brother was still asleep." Al explained, glancing at his brother's hooded figure in front of him.

"That, or he just hates the desert," Zampano said, looking around. "All of us do; this place is nothing more than a giant sandbox." It was true; the only thing besides the gleaming mounds of sand was the occasional shrub or cactus. The sun shone down on them, no clouds in the sky to protect the four from the heat. Their shadows had already started to grow long, stretching to in front of them like a compass pointing straight to Xing.

The group kept walking for hours, the silence unbroken except for the occasional comment. At first, the nighttime was a much-needed reprieve from the boiling heat, but soon the cold that set in was just as bad. When they finally set up camp, everyone was exhausted from the harsh climate and went to sleep as soon as they ate a meal of dry bread, smoked meat, and water. After all, the desert was a harsh place.

* * *

In total, it took three weeks and six days to cross the desert by camel into the massive country of Xing, whose size was rivaled solely by the country of Drachma to the Northwest. The small group's progress was hindered by sandstorms and heat, and their water rations were running next to empty as they finally stumbled over the borderline.

The country of Xing's culture varied from Amestris in the same way its alchemy did; while Amestris had chosen to center its government and military around fighting, the culture had also changed slightly to fit into its warlike customs. In Xing, it had an entirely different monarchy, and its culture was all based on the 50 tribes that occupied the country. While a trade route is being arranged from Amestris to Xing, the current ruler of this country has yet to pass the title of Emperor to his new heir, the prince of the Yao Clan, Ling. Despite knowing all of this, Ed, Al, Jerso, and Zampano were all still shocked to see the strange customs of the new country they had entered.

"Why the hell do they keep staring at us? It's not like we have giant targets on our backs or anything!" Steamed Ed, glaring viciously at the locals who kept their distance from the glaring man.

Al laughed, filling their water bottles using the public well that they had found in the center of the desert town. "From what May had told us, I would assume it's because our hair is blonde, brother, and your eyes too. Since our father was the one to teach alkahestry, they have an old belief that golden hair and eyes are what makes a 'perfect person.'"

"Well, it's still rude to stare!" Groused Ed, sipping water and glaring into the cup before emptying it. "Whatever. Sand keeps getting into the water no matter how many times I clean it, and I still can't get all of the sand out of my hair."

"Guess that's just the price of living in the desert," Zampano said, unsaddling the camels.

"Now, are you gonna stand there an' complain, or are you gonna help us find somewhere to stay the night?" Jerso muttered, hefting their suitcases back onto the camels and pulling the reins of one back towards town.

Ed blew his hair out of his face, the braid coming undone, and sighed. "Helping, helping." He said, turning his attention away from the locals, who had been setting up a market with silks, masks, and beads hung brightly from the stalls. Most of the people had dark black hair, although a few people had gray or very dark brown hair as well. The sandy-colored hair of Zampano and Al as well as the golden hair of Ed stood out quite a bit, and Ed couldn't help but feel like they were staring at him because of his height, due to previous awkward experiences in the military.

"Hey, brother." Al said as they carried their bags after Zampano and Jerso, who had stopped to ask a local boy for directions to the nearest inn. "Do we think we'll run into Ling or May while we're here?"

"Your friends? I doubt it." Zampano commented, overhearing. "They're from the Yao clan and the Chang clan, right? This is the Hans clan's territory."

"Territory?" Ed asked, interested. "Can't they just travel wherever they want?"

"No." Al said, shooting a glance at his brother, and then looking around. "Every clan has a certain amount of land depending on their power and number of people. The emperor has his own territory, the largest of all of the other fifty territories, and this 'Emperor's Ground' counts as the capital here. Since each clan rivals each other, they tend to stay in their own territory except when travelling to the capital or out of the country of Xing, although some people do travel all over Xing just because they want to."

"Wow, Al, you really know your stuff, then." Ed said in surprise, blinking and rubbing his eyes because some sand had been blown into his face again. "Did May tell you this when you asked about coming here?"

"That's right." Al said, not missing the amusement in his brother's tone. "Why?"

"Oh, no reason," smirked Ed, and Al shot a glare at him that the levelheaded teen normally didn't show.

Zampano and Jerso exchanged glances, and Al felt himself go pink as he blushed and fell silent, aware that his protests would just give him away, like what Ed did when people mentioned Winry. It was good to see Ed as his old self again, though. He had been withdrawn and thoughtful lately, and had only brushed it aside whenever anyone asked. But after having traveled with his brother for four years and growing with him every step of the way (well, Ed didn't grow that much and Al didn't have a body, but still.) Al knew when something was bothering Ed more than he let on. But even so, Ed wouldn't tell him until he was ready, thinking he could carry the weight himself without bothering anyone. That was just who Al's brother was… Al was like that too, actually, now that he thought about it. Maybe not as stubborn as his brother, but he didn't like involving other people in his worries.

"Al…? Hello, anyone there?" Ed asked, waving a hand in front of Al's face.

"What is it?" Al asked, snapping out of his thoughts.

"We're here, come on." Ed said, handing his reins and camel to a boy about their age who bowed to them and led their camels away, towards the back. The inn itself wasn't very tall, as the tallest buildings tended to have six floors here, due to the unstable ground made of sand to prevent too many collapses. The inn was no exception; it had five floors and was made out of concrete, bright painting of red and yellow swirls covering the sand-colored base. A few people with brown, red, black, and blonde hair could be seen inside, obviously being travellers from Amestris and other places.

"Wow," Ed said in surprise. "It's so… bright here."

"That's an' understatement." Grunted Jerso, and Zampano grinned as they led the way upstairs. "Our rooms are on the second floor; they have a library in town me an' Zampano are going to check out for today. You guys wanna come?"

Ed and Al shot each other glances. Ed sighed, rubbing his right shoulder. "The surgery I had to get the remaining screws out of my arm still hurts a little, Al. You go look without me for today and I'll get some rest. If there's anything of interest, I'll go look through the books tomorrow, okay?"

"Brother? Are you ok?" Al asked worriedly, and Ed nodded, smiling.

"Of course. Just tired. Don't worry about me!"

"Well…. All right. See you in a few hours, brother."

They reached their room, Zampano and Jerso having the one next door. There were two beds, with bright colored cloth, a dresser, and a bathroom. After putting away everything, Al, Zampano, and Jerso left, leaving Ed all alone.

Ed flopped onto his bed, sighing tiredly. "Ugh. I wanted to go to the library, but if I get a fever from overworking myself too soon, Winry will kill me when I get back." He shifted, and started undoing his messy braid. "Oh well. After weeks of crossing that desert, it will be nice to sleep in a bed again." He lay down, closing his eyes as he thought about his plans on learning alkahestry.

"_Edward Elric…"_ A voice murmured, and Ed's eyes snapped open as he sat up, listening.

"Who's there?" He snapped, looking around, his heart pounding. "Show yourself."

There was no answer, and Ed almost thought he had imagined it. Still, it was a long time before he managed to go to sleep. That voice… it had sounded familiar. It had been male, but other than that Ed was unsure of whose voice it could be. Had Ling sent more ninjas to spy on them or something? No, Ed wouldn't have felt like he recognized the voice since Fu had been the only male guard Ling had had. So whose voice could it have been?


	3. Chapter 3

**-Authors Note-**

**Some of the names have different spellings, like Kimbley can be spelled Kimblee and May can be spelled Mei. But I'm sure you guys know whom I'm talking about with the slightly different spellings. Also, Ed is still referred to as the Fullmetal Alchemist. Because, let's face it, that's as much his name as Ed.**

**When I started writing this, Pride/Selim was my third favorite homunculus but not one of my top favorite characters overall. Now I would say he's right up there with Ed, Al, and Envy, which is really surprising to me. There's something interesting about the creepy little kid that just grows on you, y'know?**

**Someone asked what if 36 people reviewed the first chapter and Ed grew three feet. Does anyone else remember Ed's daydream in the episode Miracle at Rush Valley where Winry was only as tall as Ed's waist and Al [in his giant suit of armor] was only as tall as Ed's shoulders? I don't think Ed would mind, haha.**

**As always, I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood.**

**Thanks for reading! Please review!**

* * *

Al and the others returned to the hotel when the sun had already vanished from the sky and the hot air had turned frigid. Few people were still out in the dark, and since most people still used candles and oil lanterns for lighting because of the difficulties of putting power all the way out in the desert, few lights were still on inside the buildings. Al was carrying a pile of notes, and he had bought a sand-colored jacket not unlike Ed's red one. The small group was silent as they scuffed up sand that had blown onto the road on their way back, brushing past the few shadows of humans that still roamed the streets and returning to the well illuminated hotel.

"Brother, we're back!" Al called as he entered his and Ed's room, pulling off his jacket and tossing it onto the unoccupied bed closest to the door. Ed didn't reply, and Al looked up at his brother's form. Ed was sprawled out on his bed, his stomach once again showing. Despite this, Ed twitched every now and again, and Al sighed. _Still having nightmares even now,_ he thought sadly. _I remember that he had a lot when I had been unable to sleep due to being trapped in the suit of armor but… I guess that what we did will always haunt us both._

"Goodnight, Brother." Al undressed and brushed his teeth before blowing out the light, which died with a flicker and a tribute curl of smoke that drifted into the night.

* * *

"I'd like to look around town today," Ed said, thoughtfully thumbing through the notes Al had taken on alkahestry. He had worn his hair in a simple ponytail today, and had left off his red coat because of the heat. "Porky and Frog Spit can continue researching in the main library of this town, but there's a chance that bookstores and minor libraries could also hold important information."

"Hey, we resent that!" Jerso started, and Zampano nodded in annoyance.

"Do you want to tick us off? It's Zam-pahn-oh and Jer-soh, got it?" He said, slowly pronouncing their names and pointing at the named person/chimera.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," the sixteen-year-old said, crossing his arms. "I'm just saying we should split up, cover more ground."

"That sounds smart, brother. I'll go with you to look around town," Al agreed, running a hand through his short blonde hair.

"Great, that's settled!" The Fullmetal Alchemist said, banging open the door with his foot and marching out and leaving a room of people silent and bewilderedly staring after the impatient teen. Today was going to be an… interesting day, for lack of a better word.

"Think it'll rain today, Al?" Edward asked, tilting his head up to peer at the stormy sky with a thoughtful glance. "My arm and leg are still aching from that stupid surgery from four and a half weeks ago. You'd think they would have healed by now."

"I don't know if it'll rain. It does look cloudy today," Agreed Al, trying not to get too distracted by all of the various merchandise on the street. "Hey, isn't that stand a miniature bookstore?"

"Where?"

"There, right besides all of those masks."

"Bingo! Hey, YOU!" Ed yelled, causing the stand owner to look up in surprise. "Yeah, you! Got any books on alkahestry?"

The woman peered at Ed for a moment before going off in… what _was_ that language? Ed blinked, and turned to Al.

"Hey Al?"

Al turned to his brother, meeting the golden eyes with his green ones. "Yes, Brother?"

"By any chance do they speak a different language in Xing?" Ed asked suspiciously, and Al chuckled and rubbed the back of his head.

"Actually, now that you mention it, there are about ten different languages in Xing depending on the area, so yeah."

"…any reason _why_ didn't you mention this earlier?" Ed asked, struggling to keep his twitching eyes calm as he glowered at his younger brother.

Al appeared to ruminate on the question for a moment before turning to his older brother. "Sorry, Brother, I guess I have short-term memory today."

"WHO HAS SUCH SHORT STATURE THEY CAN'T EVEN TELL WHAT LANGUAGE PEOPLE ARE SPEAKING BECAUSE OF HOW FAR AWAY PEOPLE'S MOUTHS ARE FROM MY EARS?!" Ed screamed, glowering at his younger brother.

"Ah, uh, I didn't mean it like that, Brother, besides, we're the same height, so you're not short to me…" Al said, backpedaling quickly. Trust his brother to turn this into a height argument!

"I'M TALLER THAN YOU!" Ed screamed, grabbing at his hair in frustration.

Al sighed. "Come on, Brother, let's just go look, okay?"

Ed sent his little brother a withering glance but still stomped off to the stand. Al sighed, suddenly feeling like it was going to be a very long day.

* * *

"I got it!" Zampano said, leaning over to Jerso. "This reference is also used here and here, so I started looking for what it meant by 'dual souls' in other in other texts. Apparently, a chimera is the combination of two or three souls in one body, which were often the bodies of all of the souls placed together. For most chimeras, this was extraordinarily painful because the souls fought it out and the mind was often in pain or unaware of its surroundings."

Jerso nodded, flipping open one of the books that he had placed beside him. "Yeah, it mentions that here, too. And there, it says as alkahestry and alchemy gained experience in the matter, the smartest or most dominant soul took over while the other souls were suppressed deep in the mind."

Zampano suddenly perked up, sitting back and pushing his glasses up his nose. "I think I have an idea of where to look next for a lead!"

* * *

About two hours later, Al and Ed both carried a bag of books on alkahestry. The sky had kept growing darker, but so far the rain had been kept at bay. Al was quite satisfied with what they had found; unlike Amestris, books on alkahestry were as common as books on alchemy back home. In fact, Al had even found a book theorizing on using alkahestry to combine animals in a slightly different aspect than what alchemy did. Ed, however, wasn't quite as excited since he had been on a personal mission to find a book, scroll, or drawing that even _hinted_ at a lead to get Pride and Selim (they could be counted as two different people now, right? Ed wasn't entirely sure but decided to just classify them as two beings.) out of his hair. Ed was almost positive it could be done, especially since so few traces of a homunculus had been appearing on his person. No purple or red eyes, no black hair. So far, just the freaky healing abilities and the nightmares had shown up, and Ed could hide those from Al without too many difficulties. In fact, Ed theorized that it would be relatively easy to fix, so long as it was done before too much time went by.

"Oh, you're from Amestris?" The man asked, leaning against his counter. He had black hair and wore a green jacket, much like the style that Ling had worn when Ed and Al had last seen the prince. "Sure, I can teach you some alkahestry. Do you have any experience with it?"

"No, not yet. We're alchemists." Al explained, and then regretted his choice of words. "Er… alchemist researchers." He glanced at his brother, but Ed hadn't noticed his slip. Instead, the golden-haired boy was staring down at a little girl.

"You want _what?_" He asked, unsure if he had heard the girl correctly. Ed suddenly had a really bad headache, and was wondering if it had to do with being asked this question multiple times by little kids…

The girl smiled up at him innocently, speaking in a heavy accent. "Some of your hair."

Ed sighed. This, as weird as it was, seemed to happen quite often in Xing to him. He briefly wondered if he should dye his hair black, but then he would_ really_ resemble the homunculus he had known… "No! Why would you even want my hair?!"

"Because, it's so pretty and golden colored." The little girl said sweetly. "I would ask for your eyes, but daddy would yell at me."

"For good reason!" Ed said, gritting his teeth. "Now listen. This is my-"

Al interrupted him. "Brother, you're causing trouble again, aren't you? It's like you need a babysitter even now, and I can't hold you back now that I'm the same size as you!" Al said, sighing in exasperation.

Ed could have strangled his brother. Sure, he would do anything for Al, but that sweet, innocent side of him that Ed had grown up with seemed to be suddenly taking a vacation back in Amestris at the moment. "FOR THE LAST TIME, I'M TALLER THAN YOU!"

"Oh, Brother!" Al complained, and dragged Ed back to the man. "So can we both come take a few lessons tomorrow? We'll read up on it tonight so we'll be ready then."

"In one night?" The man asked in surprise. "Kid, it takes much longer than that, about as long as alchemy, as far as I know. This could take years!"

Ed quit glaring at the little kid and glanced at the man. "We can master the basics in a few days. Alchemy only took us six months with a teacher, after all. We can take books back with us."

The man looked at them skeptically, but nodded. "I don't know about that, but I'll get you as far as you can in your studies."

"That's fine, thank you so much!" Alphonse said, bowing in the Xingese fashion while Ed tapped his fingers together, a habit he had picked up after he had gotten his arm back. It was strange to finally feel his fingers touch on both arms.

* * *

"Hey, Al, let's head back, I think it's about to pour." Ed commented, tilting his head up to study the sky. His headache had gotten worse, and his chest felt tight and was dully aching. Had he picked up some kind of sickness here? Ed couldn't remember getting sick too often, but it wasn't an impossibility. Once, Ed had collapsed with a fever in Mustang's office. Al, of course, had panicked. It must have reminded Ed's little brother too much of what had happened to their mother during the epidemic, and Ed had felt horrible for worrying his brother… not to mention the embarrassing fact that the idiot womanizer Mustang had had to carry Fullmetal to the hospital, as Al had gone into shock for a few hours and could only numbly follow as Ed had gasped for breath. The stupid fever had put Ed out of commission for an entire week, too.

Al glanced at his brother, who looked a little pale, and then lanced up to peer at the darkening gray sky. "All right, Brother," he replied, shifting his bag of alkahestry books to the other arm.

Ed nodded, looking relieved (which wasn't lost on Al, but he guessed that Ed didn't want him to ask about it) and the two brothers started winding their way through the small streets and sandy shortcuts (they were the equivalent of small alleyways in Amestris, but had no paved ground, just sand) when the first raindrop fell, leaving a perfectly round dark splotch on Ed's shoulder. Ed shivered, although the rain wasn't cold; but still, something felt wrong. Ed's senses, trained from fending off his teacher, Izumi, for so long, told him to duck. Having experience with life-and-death situations, Ed obeyed, and a second later a punch swung overhead.

Al dropped his books, shoving them with his foot to the side, and leapt backwards as Ed dove on his stomach out of the way. Al quickly got into his basic fighting stance, but Ed was slower, his movements sluggish as he coughed. Al shot a glance at him, but Ed had trained his eyes on the people that had just attacked them.

There were three. All were lean and all were absolutely filthy. Wearing different dark cloaks and masks that leered at the two brothers, a muffled and relatively young male voice came from the figure that was the shortest and most likely youngest of the three. "Hand over any money and valuables," he said, stepping forwards and pulling out a long knife. "And no one dies."

"Al…." Ed gasped, glancing at his brother and starting to hear his rapid heartbeat in his ears. _Ka-thump, ka-thump, ka-thump…_ "Let's show these punks a lesson."

"Right." Al said determinedly, and then faced the figures trying to appear tall and fierce.

"Run away right now," Ed said, addressing the muggers while struggling to keep his voice level. "And I don't have to kick your sorry butts into tomorrow!"

"You'll regret that," the tallest figure said in a woman's voice, and she dashed forwards, springing lightly from one foot to the other before landing on her hands and attempting to swing her body around and hit Ed. The two brothers were lucky that they had met Ling, Lan Fan, and Fu; the attacker's techniques were similar, if a bit different, to Ed and Al's friends.

Ed sprang out of the way, shaking his head, which was still aching. Al could tell something was wrong instantly; Ed normally would be able to knock out punks like these relatively quickly. After all, they weren't that strong, they just had a different fighting technique. The rain started to fall lightly, leaving marks of water on the discarded piles of books that sat to the side of the fight and the raindrops dripping off of the fighting people.

Al clapped his hands and pulled a sword out of the ground, fending off the wild jabs that his attacker took, the only person that hadn't spoken. Clangs of metal filled the air, and just as the attacker managed to spot an opening in Al's defense, Ed kicked him in the side from behind before dodging the knife of the woman.

Al tossed the sword aside and leapt, landing on his attackers arm and quickly kicking him before he jumped off. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed that Ed was slowing down, his breathing was heavy and he had gone pale. "Brother, are you alright?" Al yelled, wanting to race over but unable to in the middle of a fight.

"I'm fine-" Ed started to yell, but gasped in pain as his heart beat echoed in his ears.

* * *

Back in his prison of souls, Selim sat up quickly, alertly looking around. He glanced down at his suddenly shaking hands, and gritted is teeth in anger. "My Philosopher's Stone…" He hissed, contemplating the issue at hand. Then he looked up, his cold purple eyes glinting in the world of red that he currently existed in. "It has started."

* * *

**KA-THUMP!**

The heartbeat echoed, louder than the fight at hand, and Ed's eyes widened as he grabbed at his chest, choking in pain as he fell to his knees.

Al dodged the youngest man that had joined into the fight along with his silent partner, whirling to look at his brother. "Brother?!" He yelled anxiously. "Ed?!"

**Ka-thump…!**

Ed writhed in pain, and the youngest mugger took advantage of the golden-haired teen's weakness to lunge at Al, attempting to knock him out cold by using a beer bottle as a baseball bat instead of the knife that he had first pulled out, which had been dropped to the ground by accident. Al, having plenty of street-fighting experience from Izumi's teaching and the constant fighting against the homunculi, dodged easily, clapping his hands and slamming them to the ground.

**Ka-thump…**

"What… the hell?" Ed managed to gasp. The left side of his chest was throbbing, like someone was attempting to rip his heart out. Another wave of pain washed over him, and he forced his body to stay upright instead of collapsing, dimly aware of the blue sparks shooting into the night as Al unleashed his alchemy on the muggers as he frantically protected his brother. Everything was spinning, though, and Ed almost screamed in pain. His heartbeat kept echoing in his ears, and Ed felt helpless and dizzy. What was wrong?

**Ka-thump.**

The pain grew worse, and Ed blinked away tears, his whole body shaking slightly. Al leapt, kicking a mugger square in the chest with his foot and swinging around to punch another in the face. The first mugger, the silent one, dove, a dagger in his hand. Al clapped and brought his fists down on the ground again, a giant fist erupting out of the ground, tossing the mugger down the alley where he turned and ran.

"He's a freak! He can use alkahestry without a circle!" One of the two remaining muggers managed to gasp out, backing up and turning pale. He exchanged glances with the taller man before they both turned and ran as if they were about to be eaten alive.

Al's breath was coming in slow gasps as he watched them run, and then he whirled around and raced to his brother's sides. "Brother? Brother, what's wrong? Where does it hurt?"

**Ka-thum-**

Ed gasped suddenly, and then opened his eyes and looked up at Al, puzzled. "It… doesn't hurt anymore," he said, confused. "I'm perfectly fine." The teen shakily stood, placing a palm against the wall as he steadied himself before taking a deep breath and pushing himself away from the wall and back onto his own two feet. His heartbeat had suddenly stopped ringing in his ears, and a moment later he had been fine. Ed closed his eyes and listened for his heartbeat, wondering if something was wrong with it. Had he just had a heart attack or something?

"**Help me…"**

"**I want to die…"**

"**Kill me now!"**

It didn't take the protégé long to process what he was hearing and match it up with his knowledge. Ed remembered his father mentioning what having fifty thousand souls suddenly trapped inside him was like, and what Envy's true form had shown him. His heart was gone; all that was left was Ed's new core….

A Philosopher's Stone.

Ed was officially a homunculus. Was any research he could do going to come too late?

He turned away from Al and promptly threw up. It was then, and only then, that the heavens decided to fully unleash its tears, soaking both brothers and their books in the rain, the ink running like blood.

* * *

**All right everyone, that's all for this week! I'm sorry about the cliffhanger, but it was needed. I had way too much fun writing the ending to this chapter. XD **

**Next chapter everything slows down a little, but Ed needs a small breather, right? **

**I've never written a fight scene that uses physical violence like this before, so any tips and critique on points where the fight scene was off would be appreciated so I can improve, thanks!**

**Oh, and a fun fact is that I wrote this chapter out of order. I wrote the beginning, ending, and then large chunks of the middle at random spots before going back and smoothing everything over. That fixed my writer's block really well, actually. And no, I was unable to resist putting a short rant by Ed in here. **

**Oh, and one more thing before my long author comment is finished. I'm not going to have any time next week, so I decided to just release the chapters when I can. Unless I'm too busy, one should still come out at least once a week.**


	4. Chapter 4

**-Author Note-**

**Thanks for all the positive comments, guys! Really, it means a lot. **

**One little note that at least one comment mentioned was that Ed's leg and arm would be weak. For the arm, it didn't really affect Ed while fighting an evil homunculus that had just tried to kill the country, so I figured it was all good. For the leg, the Philosopher's Stone actually was working at that moment (it had been working on and off since Ed still had his regular heart then, if you guys haven't noticed that) so Ed pretty much regenerated a whole new leg. Hope that clears up any confusion!**

* * *

Ed was dimly aware of his brother kneeling next to him and yelling something. Al had draped a coat over him, and Ed briefly thought that he was glad it was covering his head before his thoughts drifted away again. Ed felt numb to the world, and heard his brother's voice without understanding what he was saying. The pain from his surgery had vanished completely, and if Al had been watching he would have seen the little red sparks finishing the job that they had slowly been working on for the last few weeks. But still, Ed felt like he was drowning underwater, the rain splashing onto him only being noticed because it filled his eyes and covered the whole world with a veil. "What… what should I do?" Ed whispered, dropping his head into his hands. He had sat down in the shortcut, feeling suddenly tired and wary. Suddenly, thoughts struck him… were...were his eyes still gold? Would Al realize what had happened?

His worry for his little brother snapped Ed out if the pit he was wallowing in, and he suddenly stood, clenching his fists and keeping his head turned away from Alphonse. "Al…? Let's… let's go back."

"But Brother… what…" Al said, leaping to his feet and following his brother as he walked over and pick up the soggy books. Al gave them a glance; the words and pages were soggy and probably ruined. But Al could fix them with alchemy later. But still… if Ed was sick and hadn't told him… "_Please_, Brother, tell me what's wrong! I can help you, everything will be-"

"I don't want to talk about it." The teen kept his head turned away from Al, walking swiftly back down the streets and heading back to the hotel as fast as he could without breaking into a run. He was aware of how hurt Al felt, but it couldn't be helped. In this rain, he could only hope that his appearance was masked until he could do something about it… he could fix this. He had gotten his and Al's bodies back, hadn't he? So surely… something would…

A snide voice broke into his thoughts. _"I swear, you're the only human who __**completely**_ _ignores the fact that you just became much, much more powerful than anyone else."_

Ed nearly tripped over his own feet, forcing himself to keep walking. Glancing around and scanning the surroundings, Ed lowered his voice to a mutter. "Pride?"

"…_No. As much as I hate to admit it, that's __**your**__ name now. I'm Selim, or are you too busy worrying to think straight?" _The haughty voice said, and Ed gritted his teeth in annoyance. He didn't want to deal with that arrogant homunculus now, of all times.

"So you're stuck with me, too?" He asked stiffly, glancing over his shoulder to see if Al was a good distance away. His little brother kept looking lost and hurt, and Ed forced himself to keep at least five paces in front of him. He entered their hotel and stomped up the stairs, fumbling in his pant's pockets for the key.

Selim sighed. _"That's right. Ever since we fought, I've been stuck here, too weak to get even a mere human to hear me. And now my Philosopher Stone's gone, all thanks to two stupid humans."_

Ed unlocked the door, dropping the books onto the floor, grabbing his jacket, and locking himself in the bathroom just as he heard his brother enter. "Two? Me and who else?"

"_Kimbley, the traitor. He had the nerve to interfere when I was about to take over your container and allowed you to beat me __**after**__ I had started transferring my soul into my new container. When I next see his soul, I'm going to-"_

"Wait. Are you saying that that insane murderer is stuck inside of me?!" Ed hissed, his hands clenching into fists.

Selim's voice coldly replied. _"That's right. Him and Gluttony might be able to talk to you too, although I doubt either will be strong enough considering how weak __**I**__ am. Now, if you're so weak and useless to not want the stone's power, give it back to me!" _

"And why would I want to do that? You'd just try and kill everyone again. Why shouldn't I just destroy the stone and you while I'm at it?" Ed asked darkly, glaring into the mirror. For once in his life, he actually considered killing someone. If that was the only way other than living like this forever then… He flipped down Al's hood, preparing himself for the worst. Still, to his horror, his hair wasn't gold anymore. It was black. _ It's a good think I had the coat on…. Did Al notice anything was up…? _In fact, now that Ed got over the startling fact that his hair wasn't gold anymore, he also noticed his eyes were purple. Purple! "I'm getting my regular body back. I've done it once before; I can do it again."

"_How naïve. It's like you think you can actually do that without my help." _Selim said cruelly, and Ed narrowed his eyes.

"That's right."

"_Hmph. So why don't you ask your brother for help? After all, weren't your goals to always get the other brother's body back? It seems out of character for __**you**__ to hide this from him." _Selim inquired, a bit of curiosity in his voice. _"Also, I would calm down; you aren't used to __**my**__ powers yet, so you could end up doing something stupid if you let your feelings control them like this... not that I care."_

Ed glanced down and stiffened as he noticed the shadows that had crept around him, twisting and shifting in the light. As he noticed them, he realized he could _feel_ them, and with a sigh he pulled them back into his own, normal shadow. "I know that. But still… I don't want to push my burdens and my mistakes on other people. Al doesn't need to know about this."

"_I shouldn't be surprised, then. But if you don't want my help, don't come sobbing to me when you're stuck as a superior being with powers you can't even being to control, Edward Elric." _Selim said stiffly, his voice fading away.

Ed sighed, feeling tired. He felt starving, and he still had his appearance to deal with. Had he been able to use alchemy, he could have said he dyed his hair to stand out less; as it was he would have to hide his hair and eyes from Al until tomorrow. He could say that he had gotten black dye from the store. As for his eyes… tinted glasses or a hood could hide them. He also looked a bit paler; but then again, Ed's clothes had been chosen to hide his skin so his automail hadn't shown way back when. He would actually use the hood he considered useless on his jacket for once and that would be that.

_I can do this._

* * *

Al was sitting on his bed, staring at the bathroom door. His brother's muffled voice could be heard, but Al had no idea who he was talking to. Al blinked away tears, pulling off his wet clothes and changing into dry ones. It wasn't night yet, but the rain had made the sky go dark much earlier than normal. Jerso and Zampano would probably not be back until late. And… despite the fact that he wasn't alone, that Ed was here… Al _felt _alone. His stupid brother was keeping him in the dark about something again, and Al knew it wasn't as little a deal than his brother made it out to be. You didn't just collapse on the ground coughing and gagging before standing up and being perfectly fine. Al believed that lie just as much as when Teacher said she was fine after coughing up blood. Why did people always have to lie to those closest to them…?

Lost in thought, Al started pulling out the wet books and using alchemy to evaporate the extra moisture from them before reconstructing the book to still be legible, like they had never gotten wet. Ed couldn't help him anymore, so Al silently fixed one book after another. It was only when the door creaked open that Al looked up. "Brother wh- what are you wearing?"

Ed had his own coat on, with the hood still flipped up and pulled over his face. Underneath that was Ed's normal, dry black coat, and a spare change of clothes his brother must have had in the bathroom. Keeping his face pointed ta the wall, Al heard something along the lines of 'I'm cold from the rain' or something like that, and Al sighed.

"Brother… have I… done something to upset you?"

"What?" The Fullmetal Alchemist turned a little, but not fully. "Of course not, Al. I just… I just want everything to work out, okay?"

Al tried to keep himself calm, but he couldn't help himself. "Then why don't you tell me what's wrong so we can fix it together? Stupid brother!" He exploded, hunching over as if he had used all of his energy in that statement. "I mean… we've been through so much together. What… what would make you act like this for the last few weeks?"

"Al…."

"I'm going to study, _Brother_. I would suggest you do the same." Al said softly, picking up a few of the books he had bought that morning. He didn't know what was wrong with Ed, but he would find out. Ed couldn't hide what was wrong forever, after all. And when he did, Al could fix it. No matter what, Ed and him could get over any obstacle; they had proven that throughout their travels. There would be _some_ way to fix everything that had gone wrong ever since they left for Xing, after all.

_I can do this._

* * *

**-One week later-**

"So again, if you can focus, channel your energy into this flow of chi, you can harness the dragon's pulse. The energy is never created from nothing; rather, it circulates back into the earth. If you are in a fight, for instance, the stronger your enemy is, the more potent alkahestry you can achieve by turning his energy back against him." The man said, who's name happened to be Ri, said, drawing a circle in the sand and throwing markers down that dug into the earth on all of the points where the star inside the circle touched. He tossed the markers down across the room, and placed his hands on the circle. Al gasped in awe as a flower bloomed across the room, pushing itself out through the cracks in the floor. "It would be impossible to create a plant out of soil; however, by supplying energy through the chi's flow, I can bring the nutrients in the soil to a seed that had never taken route and get it to grow this way."

"But that's amazing!" Al said in excitement, leaning forwards. He was almost acting like nothing unusual had happened between him and his brother, except for the occasional side glances and cold shoulder the two brothers had given each other since the argument one week ago.

Ed sighed, propping his chin on his right hand. "Yeah, cool. Do you think we're ready to attempt it yet?" Ed was wearing sunglasses, which Jerso had joked that he was trying to get more girls by acting cool. No one had really been too bothered by Ed's black hair, remembering how annoyed he had gotten at all of the stares earlier. Still, everyone had managed to get on the former alchemists bad side, mostly because of whenever he entered a room there voices would trail off, and Ed started worrying they knew something besides the obvious was up…

"_Impatient, are we?" _Selim broke in, bored with the complicated lessons. After a week of being able to talk to Edward whenever he wanted to, Ed was ready to kill the little nuisance, whom he had dubbed his personal devil. Now he just had to wait for the little angel to show up, telling him not to do whatever Selim said. Edward severely hoped that it wouldn't be Kimbley dressed in white, because he had enough to deal with as it was.

"That's not it, I already understand the basics, this should be easy for me." Ed snapped under his breath, and Selim laughed, his voice echoing in Ed's head.

"_Don't let your pride get the best of you, you might actually start enjoying the feeling."_

"Shut it." Ed whispered, turning his gaze back to the teacher. It was true, though, that he understood the basics. He just needed to see if he could use alkahestry; did it use the same gate as alchemy? Somehow, Ed doubted it. If that were true, then Father, being from the gate himself, would have understood what alkahestry _was_. Instead, the creature's arrogance had led to his downfall. Not to mention the fact that alchemy used an entirely different energy source than alkahestry. No, it would work… it had to, right?

Ri rubbed his hand along the stubble on his chin, regarding the two boys in front of him. They really hadn't been lying when they had said they would be able to master the basic concept quickly. They thought more like alchemists than alkahestrians, but it was only to be expected at first. "Alright. But start with something simple. How about… here." Ri grabbed two small cups of water, placing them in front of the two students and handing each a piece of white chalk. "Can you turn this water into steam?"

"That's it?" Ed asked in surprise. It didn't seem like a difficult task, and it hurt a little that that was all he was being asked to attempt. Well, he might not be able to do even this, after all.

"Brother, we can't start by performing medical alkahestry, we might hurt someone." Al said softly, chalking a circle around the glass and lifting it gently up to start scratching out the basic pattern of the star that Al had noticed May had used. Ed glanced at his brother for a moment, then grunted with a frown and started on his own circle. Al's circle was a bit thicker in its lines, but Ed's had the straighter lines when they were done.

Ri examined both, and silently nodded, not wanting to interfere. At the same moment, both boys slapped their palms into the area of the circle, concentrating as they tried to listen to the earth's 'flow,' a skill that had taken more than a few hours of practice to achieve.

_The Dragon Pulse…_

Ed narrowed his eyes, blue sparks springing to his side telling him that Al had already started.

_Like blood coursing through the veins, it runs through the earth, from the mountains to the grass, nourishing everything…_

The array wasn't responding to Ed's touch. Biting his lip, Ed pressed his hands down harder, closing his eyes.

_By tapping into that same energy, you can use it to achieve alkahestry…!_

With a feeling similar to how a person feels right before lightning strikes, Ed's array lit up, causing the sunglasses Ed wore to reflect the blue light. With a hiss, the water started to evaporate, the white steam drifting away like the smoke from canon fire. What was left was an empty glass, rings of where the water had been the only thing left in it. It had taken longer than Al's similarly achieved transmutation, and Ed felt exhausted, but he had done it. _I can use alkahestry!_

* * *

**-Five days later-**

"Five weeks and four days." Ed said, slamming his journal shut. Like when he had traveled as The Fullmetal Alchemist, he had started taking notes on alkahestry in the form of travel notes, his own personal way of hiding his research. Even Al still couldn't crack his code. "That's how long it's been since the day that we held victory over Father… and…" Ed trailed off.

"_And Kimbley betrayed me and got me stuck listening to you study and fret all day."_ Selim interjected, sighing. It wasn't that bad, though. Alkahestry was interesting, in the least. As his cover, Selim had pretended to be into alchemy, and this wasn't that different from the basic concept. Sill, it had never been anything more than a cover for Selim. The only thing about alkahestry that Selim wanted to know was how it had actually helped bring down his father… the perfect being. It was still so strange to think about it, but Selim was the only homunculus left. Well, he was really a soul at the moment, and the homunculus was Edward, but that thought was just as unpleasant to think about as father being defeated.

"Don't try and make me feel sorry for _you_, of all people." Ed muttered, using his shadows to reach for his sunglasses and studying them with cold purple eyes. "Ergh. At least in this sunny country it isn't _that_ strange to wear sunglasses here."

"_So have you figured out any solutions yet, Pride?" _Selim asked, standing up in his red prison. It was irritating enough, but as time had passed by Edward had started showing more and more of Pride's powers, which also included Gluttony's unfortunate appetite.

"Don't call me that!" Ed snarled, gritted his teeth, the shadows flaring a little as teeth and eyes opened in several of the tentacles. He was already in a bad enough mood, what with fending off the urges to eat people and act more like the homunculus Pride. "I'm not… I'll never be Pride, Selim." He said furiously, going silent for a moment. He suddenly stood up, tilting his head towards the door. He could smell two people whose scents overlapped with animals… Ed quickly withdrew his shadows, turning towards the door.

The door was suddenly slammed open, and Ed was unsurprised to see Jerso and Zampano burst in, waving notes in the air. "Fullmetal!" Zampano shouted, skidding to a halt.

"What is it?" Ed asked, still in a bad mood.

"You're never gonna believe this, but we've figured out the basics on how to turn back into humans!" Jerso said, grinning triumphantly.

"Wow. In only two weeks? You guys sure have some luck," Ed said, forcing any jealousy or longing out of his voice.

"You've got that right!" Zampano said eagerly. "Do you know where Al is? We want him to help us out with the transmutation!"

Ed sighed. It was no secret that Al was the better of the two at alkahestry, and despite Ed's joy that he could still do it; he was still irked that his little brother exceeded him in both alchemy and alkahestry. In fact, it hurt his… well, his pride. And it wasn't that Ed didn't understand the concepts; no, it was just that the actual ability seemed harder for Ed. He would have to study and work much harder if he wanted to use alkahestry to fix himself on his own. "Erm, no. I think he went to the market for some fruit." Ed said, nodding back towards the door.

"Right. Well, we're gonna go run and find him. Meet you back here with your brother as soon as we can," Jerso said, grabbing the papers he had placed down and hurrying back into the hallway, Zampano following with a wave at Edward before shutting the door.

Edward stared after them for a moment. After a moment, he couldn't keep track of where they were based on the scents anymore. "Right. I should probably eat while no one else is watching."

Selim, who knew what was coming, poked his annoying voice back into the picture. _"I'm glad I didn't have Gluttony's powers for more than two days in my container; this looks like a real pain." _

"What kind of sicko eats his own brother, anyways?" Edward muttered, pulling out all sorts of food he had bought that morning. There was enough to feed at least twelve people, and Ed knew he could probably eat more if he wanted to. He actually felt a little bad for Gluttony know; Ed was constantly hungry, and eating only made the hunger pains go away, but never the cravings. No wonder the homunculus had seemed somewhat insane in an almost childish manner.

Selim's voice was infuriatingly emotionless as he replied. _"I don't consider it that strange. My siblings and I aren't true beings; we were all the exact same person once. So when my sibling's power was at its limits and I had need of his powers, it was easy to see the smart thing to do. I'm sure you would have-"_

"No, I wouldn't have!" Ed snapped, nearly spitting out the food he was quickly eating. In his haste, he had bitten the fork in half and _swallowed_ the tip without even noticing. "I'm not, nor ever will be, like you bastards, got it? I'm sick of being compared all the time when-"

This time, when the door banged open, Ed had been too preoccupied to notice the scents of the people that had been walking to and fro the building. Needless to say, it was a strange sight to walk in on: Ed, still covered in his clothes and sunglasses head to toe inside, eating an enormous amount of food that would have cost more than a little bit while arguing. Arguing with whom?

"Brother? What are you _doing?_" Al asked, dropping the newest alkahestry book on the counter.

Ed, always being a terrible liar, started to sweat, a fact not helped by the hot climate and multiple layers of clothing.

"_Oh, for the- I've seen many creatures attempt to act, but you're absolutely-" _Selim started, thinking of his easy time fooling his 'mother.'

"Al. I'm practicing… for a food eating contest since… since I no longer receive money from the state of Amestris." Ed stammered, cutting off Selim. An annoyed presence told Ed that said former homunculus was ticked off at being interrupted.

Al stared at his brother. Even now, he could see how Ed's hands fidgeted, how his eyes glanced to the side. "That's… that's not it." Al bowed his head so his brother wouldn't see the anger and hurt that danced across it. "Brother how… how could you lie to me like this?! I've waited for the truth, but it's taken you too long! I don't… I don't want this!"

"Al…"  
"SHUT UP, ED!" Al snapped, lifting his head to glare at his brother.

Ed flinched; his little brother rarely ever raised his voice like this, let alone called him anything other than 'brother.' _Al must be really upset,_ Ed thought glancing down. _And… and it's my fault again, isn't it…?_

"Why won't you just tell me what's wrong? Why don't you trust me anymore? It's like… It's like I don't even know you!" Al finished, his voice cracking at the end and his green eyes filling with tears.

Ed was silent; he didn't know what he could say to remedy this. His hands clenched and unclenched reflexively, and he swallowed. He couldn't think right now… what…

A certain someone's voice almost set Ed off. _"Hate and fear," _Selim said thoughtfully. _"What a common response for a human." _

_Shut up,_ thought Ed in anger, although he knew the presence that haunted him probably couldn't hear his thoughts. He decided to ignore Selim until later, and attempt to calm down his brother. "Al, look, I know…"

"I don't want to hear it," Al said quietly, looking down at his shoes. "I don't want to hear anything except the truth, Brother."

"Alphonse… I… I _can't_ say! Just… trust me, okay? Please, Al…" Edward tried, reaching for his brother. With his limited practice, he was having trouble controlling the shadows that waited. On top of his hunger and… current emotional problems, his headache was massive. _Why can't my stupid stone cure headaches too?_

"That's just the thing, Brother. I don't think I can!" Al shouted, once again mad. "Why don't you-"

"Damn it!" Ed suddenly hissed. He stared at Al, his only remaining family left, and shuddered. "Maybe… maybe you're right not to trust me. I just…" Ed took a breath and pulled his hood back. Al just frowned at him, and Ed reached for his glasses.

"_You idiot, what are you trying to…?"_

Ed pulled off his sunglasses and dropped them into his pocket before looking his brother into the eye, his shadows crawling up the walls in curls and spikes. "I'm afraid, Al." He whispered, and Al stumbled backwards, shock wide in his eyes.

"Brother… those are…! Brother!" Al shouted desperately as Ed suddenly dove for the window, smashing into the sun and jumping down to ground level, the red regenerative sparks already flying as they repaired the cuts the glass had left on Ed's body.

No. Not body. _Container._ He wasn't human anymore, and had no right to pretend. He had… Al knew! Ed gritted his teeth and ran, shoving past startled bystanders and racing away from the hotel, from Al's pleading voice as he tried to chase after his brother. But Ed didn't look back; he never had believed in looking back. If he looked back, he couldn't… couldn't leave Al if he saw him…

Selim's voice appeared again as the child-like soul sighed. _"Humans, even former ones, really are idiots." _He muttered, falling silent as he waited for what would happen next.

* * *

***Gasps***** Finally, I finished this chapter! Do you guys have _any_ idea how hard that ending was to write? Plus, this chapter is much longer than a regular one. I didn't intend for it to be that way, but couldn't see any way cute little Al would go to just blow up like that in a short amount of time. So… yeah.**

**Please review! Anyone who does gets one free hug from Selim! (And a restraining order from him, I don't think he'll like being hugged by anyone other than Mrs. Bradly.)**


	5. Chapter 5

**-Authors Note-**

**Ah… I'm late for this update, aren't I? And after that cliffhanger, too. I promise, that was not intentional! I had to go out of town for a full week, so I couldn't get around to it at all. Sorry about that, and thanks for everyone's support!**

**I don't own FMA or FMAB.**

* * *

_Why?_

"Alphonse… I… I _can't _say!"

_Why?_

"Just… trust me, okay? Please, Al…" Ed's voice shook a little, and Alphonse distantly heard the telltale wobble in his voice that showed him that Edward was fighting to grab his emotions and force them not to get away from him.

_Why?_

Could Al even _trust_ Ed anymore? For weeks, Al had been patient. He had waited for Ed to be ready to say what was wrong. And that was fine, for a little while. That was just how Ed _was_, like how cats hated the rain or how it snowed in the winter. But then…

But then Edward had almost died, keeling over in the worst possible moments. And still, _still, _he remained silent. And his brother had started acting even weirder… acting almost _wary_ of Alphonse, like he was an absolute stranger.

Like he didn't know Alphonse at all anymore.

And Al was frightened. Was frightened and scared of losing his bond with the one person that had always been there, the only person who had shared his secrets with Al, who had encouraged and laughed with and acted just plain _stupid_ in front of…

It was like he was falling into an abyss. Like… what could it be explained as? What feeling or words could this sickening thing possibly be compared to? Maybe… maybe it could be compared to how Al had felt when Barry the Chopper had put the idea that he was a fake soul into his helmet.

But… but no. That had just been Alphonse's plain paranoia afterwards. Ed had always been Ed, in the way he had talked and acted and moved. He hadn't shut Al out… he had let him in.

Al took a deep breath, fighting not to cry as he hoarsely shouted at his brother, his heart wrenching in pain. "That's just the thing, Brother." _Is everything gone? What can I do?_ "I don't think I can! Why don't you-"

_Why don't you trust me?_

_Why don't you love me anymore?_

_Why don't you start acting like Edward again?!_

Al didn't know what he had been going to say. Ed interrupted him, staring fiercely at Alphonse.

"Damn it!" Ed snapped in a low voice, the voice one uses when they are dead serious about something, something very bad. That low voice (minus the anger and bluntness) had been the voice from the doctor that had said the words to shatter Ed and Al's world forever…

_Your mother has passed away…_

"Maybe… maybe you're right not to trust me. I just…" Edward said, taking another deep breath. With a shaking hand, Edward pulled the bright red hood off of his head, revealing his newly dyed black hair. Ed's face twitched, and he also rested his hand on his sunglasses, his fingers curling around the rim as he hesitated for a second. Then, in a swift, desperate, violent movement, he yanked them off, allowing them to clatter to the floor.

_Why?_

Al couldn't help it; he took a step back. Ed's eyes… why were his brother's eyes _purple?_ Purple and black... it was almost like the…

No. No, that couldn't be it! But as Al's desperate, searching eyes met his brother's, Ed gave him what should have been a comforting smile but came out as a sad grimace. Black ribbons, darker than the night, wrapped around the walls. They crawled and slid around the two brothers, curls and spikes flickering around the room. "I'm afraid, Al."

_Why… did it have to be like this?_

Alphonse had to have it confirmed. "Brother…" Such a shaky, weak voice! Al clenched and unclenched his hands before reaching out one shaking hand for his sibling. "Those are… _Brother_!" Al cried out, and Ed snapped out of whatever trance he had been in, his gaze becoming hunted, cornered.

Edward whirled around, lunging across the room and fearlessly throwing himself at the window, smashing the glass so that it rained little glistening shards everywhere. _It was almost like that window represented my world…_ Alphonse found himself thinking, his mind frozen, his thoughts blank. And then he realized.

_Brother might never return._

Ice-cold fear washed over Alphonse from head to toe. He tried to dive for the window, to leap out after Ed and chase him down, but Al's body betrayed him at that very moment; it had been holding up pretty well the last few weeks, but the fight had taken its toll. Al's body had already been weak, and after fighting like he had he had torn more than a few of his muscles and needed to use his crutches again on more than a few occasions. Al hit the floor with a loud bang, where he laid, stunned.

"BROTHER!" Alphonse screamed, dragging himself forwards and grabbing the windowsill; he cut his hands on the glass and probably had a good amount in his hands now, but that didn't matter. "WAIT! BROTHER! DON'T LEAVE ME ALL ALONE! BROTHER!" Al screamed again and again, until his voice was raw and he could no longer see from the tears that spilled down his cheeks and mixed in with his blood on the glass shards. He was useless; he couldn't even stand up now. With a muffled sob, Al covered his face with his arms as he cried.

The door was slammed open, and Al was surrounded by a worried Jerso and Zampano as they tried to ask him what was wrong, what had happened, but Al was unable to say anything but "He's gone."

_Why?_

* * *

"_Hey, are you going to-"_

"Shut up!" Edward immediately snapped, punching his fist into the wall hard enough to break a few fingers. But the pain, a welcome respite from having to think about anything else, was a useless and short attempt. His body healed the damage as soon as he noticed the extent of the injury, and then it was like it had never happened.

Selim's voice was somewhat annoyed. _"Don't take out your anger on me, Elric."_

"Why shouldn't I? This is all your fault, bastard!" Ed said angrily before slumping against the wall. Selim was right, not that he would ever admit it. This was all Edward's fault. If only he had tried fighting Pride a bit differently back then, or asking for Al's help the night he had tried but Alphonse had fallen asleep and Ed had lost his courage to say anything. At least Ed could still admit his shortcomings to himself… somehow, it seemed more human, to keep stumbling forwards and be able to hate yourself for it.

What to do now? There was nowhere in particular that Edward could think of that he could go to. Maybe he would try to head deeper into Xing; he had a little money on him and he didn't think he could face Alphonse anytime soon now that he knew.

Ed sighed, a heavy sigh that seemed to drain all of Edward's anger. "What did you want anyways, Selim?"

"_I don't recall anymore. Deal with your situation by yourself."_ Was the instant, cold reply, and Edward gritted his teeth. He had already lost everyone, and needed all the help he could get, even if it _was_ from his enemy. Selim was the only person Edward had to help him, unfortunately.

"This is your body, too! Unless you want to stay stuck in here with me forever, I would stop acting like the high and mighty brat you _used_ to be and actually lend me a hand."

"_I can't give you a hand; you already have both of mine."_ Selim dryly commented, but Ed could feel his attitude relax a little. _"Fine. I'll help for now. But later… you'll owe me for this, got it? You have to do me a favor."_

Ed glared at the wall in front of him and hunched his shoulders. "Yeah, fine, I got you. So what brilliant idea of yours is worth my favor for you?"

"_I'm still thinking about the specifics."_ Selim said coolly. _"Don't worry, Pride, it won't take me too long to decide on our course of action. For now, just hide on the roofs; they won't look up there first. I can't picture any of the three humans or chimeras you brought with you to be able to climb very well, anyways."_

"Don't call me-"

"_I can call you what I want. You might as well accept the name; if I had the characteristics of my siblings, I would even envy you for it."_ Selim replied. _"Now hurry up."_

"…Right."

* * *

"Edwaaaard!"

"Fullmetal!"

Two people peered down at the two men that wandered the streets in clothing that was clearly not from Xing. One of the people, dressed in a long black hoodie and wearing a red, white, and black mask slid down the wall, silently landing on the sand with the grace of an acrobat. They pulled out a dagger, flipping it into a fighting grip as they easily negotiated around the shadows towards the taller of the two men, a pale dirty blonde man with glasses.

The other person, a boy with his black hair in a ponytail and wearing a yellow jacket, narrowed his squinty-looking eyes and nodded, giving a universal signal for _go._ The other person swiftly brought their arm around the man's neck and held the dagger there, startling the man.

"Argh! What the-" Zampano said is surprise, starting.

Jerso swung around and glowered at their attacker. "Hey! You let him go now or else, ya hear me?" He said aggressively, wondering if he should use his chimera abilities in such an open area. "What d'ya want, anyways?"

The attacker glanced up at Jerso for a moment. There was a puffing sound as the guy dropped down to the ground a few feet away, standing up and striding over to them. "We heard you mention the name Fullmetal. Are you friends of his?"

"You're… have we seen you before?" Zampano said cautiously, his eyes flicking over the two strangers. "Yeah, we are. Why? Do you know where he is? His brother's asked us to find him."

"You mean… Alphonse Elric?" The guy asked curiously, a smile spreading over his face. "Now that you mention it, you two do look familiar. Did we maybe bump into each other during our trip to Amestris?" He laughed, and the other attacker lowered the weapon and stepped back, allowing Zampano to rub his neck. "We can help find Ed, no problem. Lead the way to Al, will ya?"

"Yeah." Jerso was still wary of the two strangers, but _did_ faintly recall the two. They hadn't really spent that much time with them, though. "Remind me of your names?"

"I'm Ling Yao and this is my bodyguard Lan Fan." Ling said cheerfully, his attitude fully switching back to his carefree self.

* * *

"…Ling?" Al said in surprise, shakily standing up from the chair. His voice was still weak, and Ling was surprised to see the sadness reflected in his eyes. He looked better from when Ling had last seen him, but his hands were bandaged and he just _seemed_ exhausted and sad. It was a little unnerving.

So of course Ling smiled big and wide and went to investigate the fridge. "Al! Long time no see, huh?" They didn't have that much food; it seemed like someone had already done some serious cleaning out that day. But there were a lot of leftovers on the table from what looked like a half finished feast… "Lan Fan is looking for your brother's chi. Don't worry, we can find him easily, he couldn't have gone far, right?"

"Yeah," Al said, but there was no enthusiasm in his body as he propped his chin on his hands and stared at the open journal in front of him, biting his lip. "But Brother might not want to see me again… I doubt he'll willingly come back, it's all my fault."

"Hmmm." Ling stopped shoving food in his mouth and glanced at the journal. Amestrian, written as what looked like a travel journal or something. "Wharghs zat?" He asked, attempting to speak around the food in his mouth.

Al sighed. "Brother's alkahestry journal. I thought some clues might be in here but I still can't crack the first page."

"Ah. I'm afraid I'm no good at decoding that kind of thing," Ling apologized. "Hey, so why did Ed run off? Did you call him short or happen to have grown taller than him?"

"No, Brother-"

_Thump!_

All four head's in the room swiveled to the shattered (and now free of glass) window, where Lan Fan crouched. She tugged off her mask, tilting it up as she bowed to Ling. "My lord, I am sorry but I am unable to locate Edward's chi anywhere in this city." She frowned, her eyes narrow with concentration. "Also…"

"Hey, how did she get in through the window?!" Zampano whispered, and Jerso shrugged, not surprised from the duo's earlier stunt.

Ling frowned, considering. Ed couldn't have gotten out of the city already, according to the chimeras… was he dead? It could be a possibility. "Also what?"

"I sensed… one of those disgusting creatures presence in the city." Lan Fan said with clear distaste, recalling how Greed had stolen her lord's body for seven months. "It seems to be swiftly moving towards the outer reaches of the city, deeper into Xing."

"That's Ed!" Al said excitedly, forgetting his sadness for a moment as he shakily stood. "Please, Lan Fan, Ling, go after him!"

"You mean a homunculus took over Ed like what happened to me?" Ling asked urgently, his eyes opening a bit more, realizing the urgency. "Let's go, Lan Fan!"

"Right, my lord!"

* * *

Jumping over gaps and flying over the roofs wasn't as hard as Ed had expected. Sure, he did slip and fall several times, but somehow the creepy shadows that Edward had hated before this particular venture would shoot out and grab the roof, yanking Ed back up and on to his feet. Even he had to admit he could have been stuck with a worse ability. Oh wait, he was: Gluttony's awful hunger cravings, which the Fullmetal Alchemist could still feel. He hadn't managed to finish his meal before Al had burst in, had he? And if he spent his money on food like he wanted to, he would run out in less than a day opposed to a week or two. The sun was uncomfortable on Ed's black hair; it seemed to soak up every last drop of the heat, putting him in an even worse mood. His golden hair had never caused him grievances like this.

Suddenly, a scent other than the average passerby's caught his attention; a female and male, he decided quickly, tilting his face into the wind. The smell kept getting stronger, and Ed could somehow tell that they were both of Xing blood, opposed to the smell of Al or Zampano. There was a slight metallic scent to one of them, too. Not to mention the smell wasn't drifting up through the openings the streets created; no, the wind drove it straight at Ed's face. So. He had two potential pursuers on the roofs like him.

"_I recognize that smell,"_ Selim butted in, sounding incredibly annoyed. _"That's the human who had hosted Greed and his friend. Didn't Wrath take her arm? That would be the metallic smell."_

"Ling and Lan Fan?" Edward said in surprise, glancing back for a moment and noticing two dots getting slightly bigger. "Shit. Those two can sense homunculi, so I doubt I can shake them." Edward ran faster, but he had never excelled at running long distances; he was better at short dashes and actual fighting. Plus, those two were like rats in the sewers when it came to roofs. Ed had no such experience.

"_You could dispose of them with your powers without too much trouble. It's not like he's a homunculus anymore,"_ Selim muttered to himself, even though Edward heard it.

"No. I won't kill anyone, especially those two." Edward replied instantly, a reflex without any thought to it.

"_Then what are you going to do, Pride? I don't see how we can get out of here without a run in with them."_

"I could-"

"Hey Edddd!" A familiar obnoxious voice cut across the sunbaked world, and Edward could have punched Ling in the face then and there. Leave it to that multi-personality prince to sound nonchalant and easy going about this whole situation. Surely he and Lan Fan could sense Ed's Philosopher's Stone and knew what he was. And_ who_ he was. Had Alphonse asked them for help?

"Go away, you gluttonous, squinty-eyed creep!" Yelled Ed, scrambling over a particularly neglected roof and risking a glance back.

_"Like you're one to talk."_ Selim muttered, referring to Ed's feast earlier that day.

Even though Lan Fan was a decent ways behind, the evil glare that came from the mask could be noted from that distance with ease. "DON'T YOU DARE INSULT HIM-" She yelled angrily, interrupted by a whispered comment from Ling.

"Aw, come on, Ed, don't you want to talk to your friend?" Ling yelled after a moment.

"We're not really friends! You just mooch off of me and use me for whatever you need me for like, say, immortality." Edward growled, no longer yelling because those two annoying people were only a few feet behind him. He needed more practice at this weird way to get around, Ed thought as he flung himself across another roof. He slipped again, but instead of his shadows rescuing him a warm, human hand caught his. Ed grimaced and looked up into Ling's grinning face.

"_He didn't need to do that."_ Selim growled, and Ed couldn't help but agree.

"From your comments, I would say that you're actually Edward, and not another presence," Ling continued, not making any move to actually pull Ed to safety. "So why not come with us? We aren't going to kill you or anything."

"I didn't need your help!" Edward snapped in annoyance. "I don't want to see anyone right now. Just go back to Al or whatever you do normally, Ling."

Ling cocked his head a little and nodded. "I would say Pride is the one that you got stuck with from that little talk. Am I right?"

"…" Edward froze for a moment, and then looked away. "That's right."

_He could tell that easily from my behavior?_

"Ed," Lan Fan leaned over the side, too, looking at him with gentle eyes now. "You would never have left your brother like this before. At least talk to him. I'm sure once you tell us everything that has happened we can help. We can hire as many alkahestriests as needed to try and cure you, so quit acting like a child that had never saved his country like you have."

Ed looked up at them, their gazes warm but stern. Ling, as usual, took a more easy going air to the discussion while Lan Fan was firm but kind. And Edward doubted that they would let him escape now. "Alright." He managed to say, trying to suppress the sinking feeling in his stomach at facing Al and everyone again so soon after his mistake.

_I'll fix this, though._ Ed decided as Ling pulled him up. _I owe everyone that much._

* * *

**And that's all for this chapter! This was just full of angst, wasn't it? Oh well. It's actually kind of fun to write, haha. So yeah. Ling and Lan Fan are back in the picture (I don't know if May will make it into this story, sorry guys!) and now all of the character's are ready to finally get over their emotional… issues. Note that I say finally, haha. **

**Hmm, I think that only two chapters are left or so. Next week's might also be a bit slow in coming. Why? School is starting for me again, and I'm getting a really painful shot that will probably slow down my typing speed. I'm sorry! But I'll try and give you guys the final chapter and epilogue as soon as possible. (So maybe not two actual chapters. But the epilogue will be pretty long.) As of right now, I don't know if there will be a sequel. But I'm not saying 'no' to that option just yet, just that it's unlikely.**

**As always, please review! Thanks a bunch. I have a long list of restraining orders to give a bunch of you guys from one annoyed adorable homunculus, and all who review this time will get to pet Xiao May. **


	6. Chapter 6

**-Authors Note-**

**I don't own FMAB or FMA.**

**Thanks for reading!**

* * *

"Hey Al!" Ling's head poked through the window, causing all three people in the room to jump.

"L-ling! Did you… Did you find Brother?" Alphonse asked hopefully, looking up.

Ling grinned at him before leaping to the floor. "Of course! Did you ever doubt me?"

Lan Fan and Edward also hopped into the room via the window, although Ed looked uncomfortable and annoyed. "I told you, Ling, I'm not buying you a meal for 'finding' me!" Edward growled, unable to look at Al just yet. "This is your own country, or maybe everyone hates you to the point where even your own people won't feed you?"

"How rude! And here I thought you were my friend!" Ling said dramatically, and Ed sent daggers at the tall teen with his purple eyes.

Alphonse, having frozen at the sight of his brother, finally managed to bumble forwards and grabbed Edward by the shirt. "Ed…?" Alphonse asked quietly.

Ed finally managed to give Alphonse a smile, although it was a small, shaky one at best and Ed seemed to struggle to hold it on his face. "Yeah, Al, what is it- OW!" Ed yelped in surprise as Alphonse suddenly punched him in the face without warning. It didn't hurt that badly; Al was still weak after all, but it would still have bruised a normal person.

"_That looked like it hurt,"_ Selim said in amusement. _"Do you really communicate happiness or affection by hitting each other?"_

"STUPID BROTHER!" Alphonse yelled at Edward as he tripped backwards and landing indignantly on his butt. "Didn't you know that no matter what happened, I would listen and try to help…? You stupid Brother…" Al's voice trailed off, and Edward blinked in surprise.

"I don't know the specifics of what happened to ya," Jerso said to Edward, crossing his arms and frowning at the shorter male. "But ya shouldn't have run away like that, Fullmetal Alchemist."

"_And now they're getting all sappy. That's great, but shouldn't these idiots focus on our problems?"_

"I… I know." Edward looked down, rubbing his cheek with one hand even though it didn't hurt anymore. He looked up again and sighed. "But still; what if I suddenly turn on you all? What if I _hurt_ someone? I don't want that, no matter what."

"Then we would have stopped you before you went too far and helped, of course." Ling said with a reassuring grin. "Besides, I'm fine even though I temporarily shared Greed's body. So I'm sure that-"

Selim interrupted Ling, and even though the tall teenager kept talking, Ed's attention focused on the invisible boy talking only to him. _"That's because Greed took over the human's body in a successful attempt. Our bodies actually merged together even if our souls didn't, and it wasn't even a successful attempt at that. Why you didn't die is beyond me, but it's not impossible that little bits of our souls are somehow intertwined now."_

Edward frowned, and repeated what Selim had said to everyone else.

"So you can actually hear that creepy kid?" Zampano asked, leaning forwards from the bed he had sat down on.

Alphonse looked down, hiding his expression. "Brother, why don't you tell us what happened from the beginning?"

Ed nodded, and the group got comfortable on the beds and chairs open in the room. As Edward explained his fight with Selim and the after effects, Lan Fan's frown under her mask grew deeper and even the chimeras looked stricken.

"So Selim actually offered to help you?" Ling crossed his arms, frowning. "I have to admit that I'm curious at the idea our little friend has."

"_Who's_ so small that they can't even comprehend ideas because their brain is too small to retain information?!" Edward automatically snarled, tensing up.

"I wasn't-"

"_Tell him not to treat me like his inferior or I won't say anything!"_ Selim childishly snapped, and Edward turned to look at Ling.

"Selim says that you're his backwater desert inferior and should show respect to him or else he isn't going to tell us anything." Edward said pointedly, and Al sighed, worn out.

"Brother, you're just adding insults to what Selim said, aren't you?"

"Of course not, Al. I can't believe you would accuse your brother of doing that!"

Everyone laughed at the brother's exchange, but the laughter sounded a bit high and lasted a second too long before the tense atmosphere returned, destroying the remaining grins.

"Selim… could you please tell us how to fix Brother…?" Al pleaded, and Edward heard Selim sigh, starting to speak as Edward repeated what he said to everyone else.

"_Fine. Tell me, the two chimeras. Can you let us see your alkahestry equations to regaining your old bodies back?"_

"Our research?" Zampano asked, surprised. "Sure, if you think that will help…" The pale man handed Edward a large stack of papers, which Edward started to flip through them as Selim thought.

"_Our body isn't that different from a chimera of a homunculus and a human, actually."_

"Meaning…?" Ling asked curiously, leaning forwards onto his elbow.

"_We can use this research to separate ourselves and return to normal."_

* * *

"And there." Edward stepped back from the circle with the complicated star patterns and glanced over at Alphonse, who was shifting through the papers once again. "Hey, Al, is that everything?"

Alphonse glanced p, setting the papers aside. "Yeah. This equation does seem plausible," the younger male said with a worried fidget. "Hey, Brother…"

"What is it, Al?"  
"What if it doesn't work?" Al bluntly and worriedly asked. Edward blinked and looked away, his shoulders tensing as if they were carrying some unseen weight.

"I-"

"I'm sure it will!" Ling said cheerfully. "After all, you two are both protégées in this, right? Not to mention getting rid of Greed was way too easy. And just when I had gotten him to agree to being emperor with me, too." Ling said the last part with a flicker of a frown, but then his reassuring grin was back and everyone else in the room nodded.

"I'm sure it'll all work out… and if this works, it means we can gain our own bodies back too, so do us justice!"

"You two are amazing, after all…"

"I agree with young lord. You can do this."

"_Just do it already and get me out of this body!"_

Edward leaned forwards, his hair falling into his eyes. "All right, everyone. Hey Al, are you ready?" Edward stepped into the circle, navigating around the lines so he didn't smudge any of the precious white lines that had taken hours to draw. He stopped at the middle, squatting down and clapping out of habit. Al and Ed locked eyes for a moment, and then they both touched their hands against the circle. Soft blue and crackling white hues appeared, making the lines light up and illuminate the room in a bright glow. Shadow's lengthened, and Al squinted as he looked up from the circle to his brother.

"Brother?" He called softly, trying to remain perfectly focused on the task at hand. It wasn't easy; the theories were complicated and Alphonse wasn't so perfect at alkahestry yet that he didn't even have to concentrate completely.

A pained gasp made Al's concentration flicker for a second, the bright light flickering. "I'm fine… keep going, no matter what, Alphonse!" Ed managed to grunt, pain flickering in front of his purple eyes. For a second, they shifted back to a beautiful, stunning golden color before switching back to the dark, brooding purple that signified his homunculus problems.

Selim wasn't in any less pain, either; in fact, Edward was almost certain he had passed out from the pain. _"Don't place me on your standards."_ Said kid managed to spit out the words, sensing Ed's thoughts, and a pained smile made its way on to Ed's face.

The circle lit even brighter, and Edward started screaming in pain, unable to hold it in.

The uncanny wailing snapped Al out of the concentrated state that he had been in. "Brother!" Alphonse gasped in shock, but then he gritted his teeth and looked back down, refusing to stop. _I can't stop just yet… if I do, it might harm Brother even more, or worse. I have to finish this!_

"Young lord, this… this doesn't seem natural," Lan Fan whispered to Ling, her fists clenching. "Shall I…"

"No."

"But, young lord…"

"If we interfere, Ed might die." For once, the easy-going teen was dead serious, his arms crossed and a pained expression on his face. "We don't know enough about alkahestry to interfere, Lan Fan."

Lan Fan bowed her head, trying to shut out the screams. It… It sounded like both Edward and Pride were screaming, the eerie metallic tone plus the stoic boy's screams setting everyone on edge. "You're right… sorry, young lord, I won't talk back again."

"It's fine, Lan Fan… I was thinking the same thing." Ling said, softly enough that he thought Lan Fan hadn't heard his last thought.

The girl looked at him for a moment before nodded, knowledge glinting in her eyes. They both were silent as they tried not to cringe from the pain in Edward's voice, hoping it would be over soon.

Despite that, it was a full twenty minutes before the glow faded from the room, and then there was only silence.

* * *

Edward stumbled forwards, toppling forwards and landing on his hands and knees. His breaths were quick and ragged, sweat dripping down his forehead. He blinked, everything hazy and blurred, an unnatural white quality to everything. His hair fell into his face, and he pushed it back before blinking and squinting at his hair. Was that…? It was. Edward's hair was golden.

"Hey… Pri- Elric?" A soft voice, nervousness and uncertainty clear in its tone, snapped Ed's attention back to the present. He pushed himself to shaky legs, facing Selim, who was pale and once again in his own body.

A feeling of elation shot through Edward, and he grinned despite the fatigue weighing down on him. "It seemed to have worked perfectly, huh?"

"**Not quite, I'd assume."** An eerie voice said in amusement, and Selim stared at Ed with an accusing look. Almost weary of what he would find, Edward finally took the time to examine his surrounding sand look behind him.

"What the hell are we doing here?" The question sprang out of the alchemist's mouth before he could say anything else. The unusual white that he had noticed earlier was because both Selim and him were standing in front of Truth, surrounded by nothing but pure, untouched whiteness in every direction and a single black doorway with a homunculus sign on the door. There was no door for Edward, considering he had given up his alchemy and gateway.

Truth stood up, tilting its head to the side. **"I thought you said you could live without alchemy, but it seems you were all too willing to attempt to get through a loop hole with alkahestry, alchemist- or, should I say, alkahestriest." **

Edward glared at the figure, ignoring the wary child that stood beside him. "Maybe you should have given me a heads up about the whole homunculus, then. It's clear that you knew from those idiotic hints you gave me, bastard. Besides, why shouldn't I learn alkahestry? You don't govern it, which arises another question. Why are we here? We didn't perform alchemy or anything."

"**What would you have given me in return for the information, then?"** Truth questioned with a grin that exposed all of its teeth. **"And what the chimeras and Al didn't tell you, for instance, that while they were technically performing alkahestry, there is an underlying basis of human transmutation that is rarely, if ever, performed in alkahestry. Of course, the traces of it are so weak I can just talk to you from your minds; while you are here, there is no toll for you to pay, as the only gate here is a locked one, void of passage for you two to see the truth."**

"So then why are we here?" Selim questioned coldly, an unreadable expression flickering over his face. "I thought that the transmutation worked fine, so why do I feel so weak? Did you take a toll already?"

Edward glanced at him in surprise. Had… had Selim actually sounded _afraid?_ There was already a first for everything, but Edward had a very bad feeling about this entire situation.

"**No, no, no." **The white figure crossed its arms in an 'x' figure, the universal sign for no. **"Like I said, your transmutation wasn't perfect. For one thing, Selim Bradley, you are now human. How do you like being exactly what you despised, cut off from your original Philosopher's Stone?" **Truth laughed, a bit of cruel amusement in its voice. **"Had there been any more influence I could use, rest assured, you would have followed your father into your Gate. However, the hell you get to experience instead is being trapped in the frail body of the species you looked down on for so long." **

"What?" Selim glowered dangerously at Truth, but there was also panic in his eyes. "You can't do that! You have no right to!"

"**I didn't do anything. Your transmutation was too separate two beings into their most natural form, and by now the Philosopher's Stone had switched owners completely and firmly. Yes, the transmutation once again made a human and a homunculus from one being, but which is which in the overall scheme, hmm? Tell me that, Selim Bradley, Edward Elric." **Truth laughed, spreading out its arms and grinning at the two boys in front of it.** "It's all Equivalent Exchange, right? You two had to pay very little to gain your own bodies again, so it's all fair."**

Edward looked down, his hair hiding his expression from the being. "Damn it." He hissed, trying to control his turbulent thoughts. "You enjoy this, don't you, you bastard?" He raised his head, glaring daggers at Truth. "If I'm stuck as a homunculus then why is my hair gold again?"

"**Because the transmutation separated into what was most natural to you."** Truth explained calmly, and Edward could have sworn he would have rolled his eyes if he actually had them. **"The only thing the transmutation failed to switch was the actual Philosopher's Stone- this causes Selim to gain human emotions and yet allow you to retain control of your own,"** here Truth paused before grinning. **"If you put work into controlling it, of course."**

"Equivalent Exchange, huh?" Edward mused, running everything over in his head. "Then I won't go insane or anything if I don't want to?"

"**Correct."**

"How do I become human again?"

"**Incorrect."** Truth said, shaking its head and answering Edward's question a bit oddly, although Edward understood what it meant immediately.

"There isn't a way, is there." A simple statement, both blunt and to the point was whispered under Ed's breath. Edward looked away cursing his bad luck. He had blown his only chance! Al was… what was Alphonse going to say? He was going to blame himself, Edward just knew it. Worry and horror filled Edward's eyes, and he shook his head. "No, there must be a way. Quit lying, Truth! I'll fix this on my own!"

"**When will you realize that alchemy isn't so important? I thought you had learned that,"** Truth mused to itself, and then tilted its head up for a moment. **"I'm Truth. I don't lie, silly alchemist. Now our time here is up; goodbye, Selim Bradley, Edward Elric, I hope it's for the last time for your sakes." **

The doors slowly creaked open, and a blood-shot eye slowly opened, staring at the two people with a wild, purple iris. Black hands shot out latching on to Edward and Selim. Both of them struggled, Selim screaming insults as he was dragged feet first into his gate and Edward following a second later. As the doors swung shut with an air of finality, Truth smiled.

"**Yes, Equivalent Exchange,"** It repeated to itself, nodding before turning its gaze back on to the universe.

* * *

"….er?" Ed's eyes fluttered and he sat up, gasping. Looking around, he noticed the worried faces of Alphonse, Ling, Zampano, Lan Fan, and Jerso all clustered around him. "Brother!" Al said in relief, sinking to his knees. "I was so worried; you wouldn't wake up and there was that screaming… are you all right? It worked, after all your eyes and hair are once again golden!"

"Listen, Alphonse…"

"He's not cured." Ling said softly, a frown flickering over his face. "How come I can still feel your Philosopher's Stone? Lan Fan, do you…?"

"Yes, I also can sense it."

"What?!" Alphonse asked in alarm. "But it worked… why didn't it…"

Edward watched as emotions of doubt and disappointment swirled over his little brother's face, tears threatening to spill down his cheeks and down into his lap. "We can try again!" Alphonse said desperately. "I'm sure we did something wrong… maybe with a different star formula I can-"

"Sorry about this, Al," Edward said, looking into his brother's eyes and sighing.

"Wha-" Al started to ask before Edward slapped his brother. It wasn't a gentle slap, either; it was a full out smack, the sound of skin hitting skin ringing out into the room.

"EDWARD!" Everyone shouted, Lan Fan rushing to check if the dazed Alphonse was all right.

"You shouldn't do that to your own brother!" Zampano angrily muttered. "What in the world got over you, Edward?!"

"It wasn't Al's fault, though, and I know he'll have blamed himself about this forever," Edward said, tilting his head up; they had worked throughout the night, and the sun was just beginning to peak up over the horizon once again. "This was no one's fault but mine from the start; this actually saved me, probably. I was told that I could keep my sanity in check now, so it's fine. You don't need to worry about me." Edward tried to give a reassuring smile, but he wasn't very good at it; there was still doubt in his eyes, but Alphonse rubbed his red cheek and nodded.

"You're right Brother, I… told? By who?"

"An old friend of ours, that bastard. You recall Truth, right?" Edward said, starting to explain. "Selim and I… oh shit, where _is_ Selim?!"

Everyone looked over at a motionless body a few feet away, lying limply in the middle of the circle. Jerso scratched his head, looking embarrassed. "I guess we got so worried 'bout you that we might've forgotten about that one…"

"Yeah…" Zampano said sheepishly.

A groan interrupted everyone's train of thought, and six pairs of eyes watched as Selim groaned again and pushed himself into a sitting position. "Damn it. I blame Kimbley for all of this," he muttered to himself in his usual sunny attitude, watching his hands open and close as he tested his motor skills quickly.

"Glad to see you're okay," Edward said sarcastically, and the human gave the homunculus a glare.

"Don't get condescending with me," snapped Selim, dusting himself off as he stood up. "I had sworn I would never go through that experience again, but I guess not."

"Oh, right, you had forced Mustang to do that, hadn't you?" Al asked, recalling what Edward had mentioned to him after the battle. "But wait, how did you meet Truth? Your bodies never left here."

"While it was indeed human transmutation," and here Edward glared at Alphonse for a moment before Al sheepishly looked down. "It was mainly alkahestry so Truth only had a certain amount of sway over us."

"Oh. So… so what now, Brother?" Alphonse asked timidly.

"Can we eat? I'm starving!" Edward said, standing up and stretching. Everyone stared at him in surprise, and Edward glanced at his or her face and shrugged. "What? I haven't eaten since I first jumped out a window!"

Everyone started laughing, the sun's rays trickling into the dark room. For the next few days, all of them (Selim included, although grudgingly) enjoyed themselves in the city before traveling deeper into Xing. (Ling having clung to Ed's leg until he had agreed to go watch his coronation.) Alphonse performed the transmutation successfully on both chimeras, which had returned to Amestris with Selim a month after Edward and Selim's transmutation.

"That's your favor?" Edward had asked in surprise, staring at the little kid in front of him.

"That's right." Selim had said defiantly, glaring at Edward. "I want you to call in some favors with the military and let me stay with my Mother instead of in custody or killed now that I'm stuck in this human body."

"Since you're human, it would have had a high chance of happening like that anyways," Edward had mused. "I bet I can let you get away with just being watched for a few years or so."

"That's sufficient, thanks… Pride." was all Selim Bradley had said before he had left, leaving Edward to watch after the former homunculus. The expression on the blonde's face had been unreadable, but before he had returned to Alphonse a small smile had tugged at his lips. He knew for a fact that he hadn't heard the last of Selim Bradley.

About a month later, Alphonse also returned to Amestris. Promises and worries were exchanged, and Edward had laughed and promised that he would try to both drink his milk _and _not maim more than ten people a month. Ling had offered a room in his new palace for Ed to stay in as he got used to his new life, finding amusement in attempting to have eating contests with the ravenous homunculus who could now eat more than even Ling. In this kind of blur, Edward's first year of living as a homunculus passed by.

It was then, a full year and six weeks after the Promised Day, that Edward finally returned to Amestris.

* * *

**Aha! I didn't miss my update deadline, haha. **

**So this was definably not my favorite chapter; I kept getting writer's block and would go work on my other story (which has its first chapter posted, but don't worry, I won't make you guys wait any longer than normal for the last chapter!) but I don't think it was too bad. **

**One of the reasons for my writer's block was my hesitation to end it like this; I had planned this from the beginnings of the story, but was writing this and started wondering if I really wanted to do this to you guys. The answer? Yep. XD**

**The final chapter/epilogue shall be posted in a week unless complications in my life occur. See you guys then~**


	7. Chapter 7

**-Author's Note-**

**So tell me, everyone… have you guys noticed the new cover?**

**I actually stumbled on to it purely by accident before they sent a message to me telling it was fan art for my story. That just, made my entire day and inspired this chapter. I mean, look at it. It's beautiful. :'D**

**It was made by ****SchrodingrsCat on Deviantart, who deserves lots of appreciation for their amazing skills!**

**Now, on with the final chapter! Be prepared for lots of angst, wrench-throwing, lots of different POV's, and a bit of Parental!RoyEd (I got talked into putting some in here, pfft). **

**You guys know you want to read and review. ;D**

**I don't own FMAB.**

* * *

Taboo. Yes, that would explain it all. It was taboo to talk or think about _it_. Because no amount of demanding, of ordering, of even begging would get Alphonse to speak. Or any other damned person who would know what had happened to Fullmetal, for that matter. Why?

Roy glanced at the report on his desk. In dark, ugly letters, the sickening, flawlessly white paper was titled the following:

"**Missing persons file 2794; Edward Elric, aka The Fullmetal Alchemist."**

It didn't have any _useful_ information on it, though; all it said was that Edward had gone to Xing travelling with his brother and two other people, but he had never returned. No one even mentioned his name; no one said if he had died or moved to Xing. Had it been anyone else, Roy could have put his mind at ease by saying they moved there, preferring a less militant country that wasn't buried to its neck attempting to fix itself.

But Fullmetal? That boy was the most stubborn, proud person Roy had ever met. Fullmetal had faced everything head on, with a 'screw everything else, I'm coming through' smirk that both ticked Roy off and made him strangely proud. Having Edward gone was expected. He had planned to travel, and he had made it quite clear that he had quit the military forever after he had restored Al's body.

Had Roy been prepared to deal with that? He had thought so. But this was different. Things that didn't add up, like how Al seemed to be grieving but not quite or the strange situation with Selim Bradley, who was still under twenty-four hour guard an entire year after he had shown up with a letter from Fullmetal… the last letter from Fullmetal. Where on earth had Selim come from, anyways?

"General, I think you should get some sleep. This isn't helping anyone… it's been a year, Roy. You're going to get sick if you continue like this," Riza said gently, putting a hand on her superior's shoulder. She had recently also been promoted herself as well as the rest of Roy's company; instead of First Lieutenant, she was now a Colonel, although she still worked as Mustang's right hand. She brushed a strand of blonde hair away from her face, studying the weary and desperate man in front of her. She was worried about Roy, to tell the truth. He had circles under his eyes, and he had actually started sending soldiers (mostly Havoc because his family lived there, but Breda had been sent once as well) all the way to Xing to look for the small blonde-haired boy whom had left cracks in the door from the times he had kicked it open and marched in, eyes ablaze with determination. Riza forced down any expression of sadness so she could stare Roy down under her best death stare, her voice hardening. "Look, Roy, get a grip. You can't become Führer by moping around a year after someone's disappearance. Now go eat something; lose anymore weight and I _will_ force you to the doctor's because of your health."

Roy looked up, turning to meet Riza's gaze before turning and looking out through the window; the sun was just peaking in the air, painting the city in a beautiful light that seemed unfair to him. "Fullmetal… it's funny. I actually seem to miss his smart-ass remarks. Why is that, Colonel?"

"I don't know, General. You've always been quite close with your company, so perhaps it's no surprise. Of course, only you can decide whether to mope over the past like a wet dishrag or hope for the future and make the country better! Who are you helping right now, _Roy_? Now come on; it's lunch break."

Roy opened his mouth to object at Riza's fiery tone, but the clicking of a gun being readied and a face-full of the barrel of the sniper's weapon shut him up quickly. Roy let out a dry chuckle, and then nodded. "Fine. Let's go, then."

Riza relaxed, sadly smiling as she looked at her superior. How long had it been since this man had stepped into her life? It had been so many years now that she had lost count. But the one thing she had never, _never_ lost sight of, was her determination to protect him. "Yeah."

* * *

"Its so cold and wet here," Edward grumbled to himself as he slipped out from the cover of one building to another. His hair was black once again; after all, living in the main city where everyone acted like gold hair was worth money had been unbearable after just a few weeks, not to mention an entire year. But now that Ed was back in Amestris, he decided to turn it back to its natural color once he got to his destination. "Ah, I don't really want to go… I'll die wherever I decide to go to first." Edward mused, cringing. "In fact, I'll bet everyone but Alphonse will want to kill me for staying away for as long as I did… damn. At least I can survive being killed once or twice… but what if that just encourages them…? Argh, I can't worry about that I- ARGH!"

Edward screamed as he slipped in the mud from the last rain shower, unused to walking in mud after the sandy, dry streets of Xing. Doing a face-plant straight into the mud, Edward scrambled up, spitting out mud and clawing at his face and trying to brush off the wet dirt. After a moment of consideration, he trudged onwards looking for the train station, deciding to fix his clothes later with alkahestry.

* * *

The poor woman selling train tickets was scared pale when an angry, somewhat short boy that looked about fourteen (but was really seventeen, as he had yelled and cussed at her when she asked if he had parents with him) marched up to the ticket booth and slid some somewhat muddy money over to her, drumming his fingers as he waited for her to hurry up and give him the ticket.

"H-here's your ticket to Risembool," she stammered, fidgeting. "And er… have a nice day, s-sir." Was he glaring at her? He was, wasn't he! She bowed once, and was relieved to hear him mutter thanks for the ticket before he squelched off in those ridiculous red and black boots of his. He hadn't looked like he was from around here, though… maybe he was just passing by. "I sure hope so," she sighed, suddenly feeling very tired.

* * *

"Not quite… where's screw fifty-eight?" The blonde-haired girl murmured, whipping her brow with one arm as she examined the metal limb in front of her. She was almost done for the day, but she it seemed that she had dropped this one screw somewhere.

"Hey, Winry!" A voice called, and Al poked his head into her room. "Are you almost done? Dinner's ready," He added with a grin. "It's stew tonight!"

Winry paused, standing back up straight and turning to glance at him with a blank look. After a moment, she blinked and smiled. "Sure, I'll be right down," she promised thoughtfully, eyeing the unfinished automail in front of her.

"'kay," Alphonse said with a grin. "Hurry up, though, it'll get cold!"

"I know, Al!" She teased back, shaking her head. The blonde-haired boy strolled away, and Winry finally found what she was looking for: the darn thing had rolled off of her workbench and landed on the floor. After attaching it where the hand met the wrist, Winry pulled off her bandana and tossed it on to the table, rushing downstairs.

Pinako was just placing the stew into three bowls, her glasses fogged up with the steam. "Ah, Winry," the tiny woman said, looking up. "Can you grab some milk really quick? It arrived late today; Al's getting the spoons," she added with a nod.

"Alright," Winry agreed, walking outside. A small cluster of glass bottles had been placed on the porch, water from the rain still dripping down their sides. Winry stooped down and picked it up, glancing out towards the hills, which were coated in sheets of rain. "Huh?" She muttered in surprise, squinting as she tried to see into the onslaught of water. Something had moved out there. But all of the cattle were in their fenced-in areas or barns in this rain… and what animal was a deep red?

A loud, squelching sound started getting louder; Winry didn't know when she had noticed it, because the rain had just roped the odd sound in with the pitter-patter of rain. But sure enough, the unmistakable noise of someone struggling through the mud reached her ears, and Winry frowned.

"…damn it all, even without… expect them to hurt…. I…" The voice reached Winry's ears, and she stiffened, frozen. Out there… that voice was most definably _his_ voice. Winry's hands covered her mouth as she froze like an unearthed mouse, and stared into something she had missed so much.

Because outside among the rain two golden eyes blinked water out of them with annoyance. _Bright_ golden eyes, unique to only three people Winry had ever met.

Owner of said eyes met Winry's blue ones, and a familiar smirk appeared on Edward's lips. "I'm home again," he joked nervously, rubbing his head sheepishly. "Can I come in?"

* * *

_SLAM!_

"Grandmother! Al!" Winry shouted, rushing inside and grabbing a towel from the closet.

"What is it, Winry?" Alphonse asked curiously, standing up.

"DAMN IT ALL!" An annoyed voice shouted, and Edward entered, cradling his bleeding head. "Why the hell did you even take a wrench outside?!"

"Never know when I'll need one," Winry replied with a glare. "After all, one idiot seems to just like making me worry all of the time!"

"Brother! You're back!" Cried Al ecstatically, rushing over to Ed. Pinako nodded a welcome, a smile curving her lips. The four of them talked over dinner, the normal insanity happening over a bottle of milk, when Ed noticed something important. Something vital.

"Al… stand up." Ed demanded, his eyes widening.

"Uh, ok." Alphonse said nervously, standing up next to Edward. Ed's eyes narrowed, and his left eyes twitched; Alphonse was taller than him.

By an entire two inches.

"YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!"

"Brother, it's only two inches…"

"If you'd drink you milk it'd…"

"SHUT UP, IT'S NOT THE MILK!"

* * *

"That wasn't as bad as I thought," Edward muttered, dusting himself off.

"Speak for yourself, Brother," groaned Alphonse, feeling all of the new bruises down his left side. "Although since it was Teacher, I think we got off easy!" He added cheerfully.

"Haha… yeah." Ed said nervously, thinking of the demonic expression Izumi had had.

"By the way, Brother," Alphonse asked abruptly, glancing away from the train's window. "Why did you tell Teacher about your… _abilities_, but not Winry?"  
Edward sighed, looking out over the passing streets. "Only an alchemist that has fought homunculi would understand, Alphonse," he said softly. "Besides, I didn't have one of my bouts so no need to."

"Bouts?" Alphonse questioned anxiously, peering at the shorter teenager.

"It's nothing, it's nothing." Ed waved away Al's questioning stare, looking down. "Once in a while, I er… act a bit strange and go on a minor rampage."

"You mean different than what you normally do?"

Edward sent an annoyed glare at his innocent younger brother, then sighed and rested his head against the seat. "Yeah. Sometimes I act more like an actual homunculus, especially in the first few months after you had left. I wouldn't worry about it, though, now I mainly just get a headache and have to sleep it off."

"Oh." Alphonse looked away from Ed, sadness flickering in his eyes.

"Hey, Al…"

"Yes, Brother?"

"You didn't have to come and be beat up by both Teacher _and_ the damn General," Ed said seriously, tilting his head to the side. "I could have returned to Risembool to get you, since you're determined to come travel with me again."

"No, no, it's fine, Brother." Alphonse said determinedly. "Besides, you might have done something stupid if I hadn't come, so it works better this way."

"I wouldn't have..!" A sheepish retort was fired back, and Alphonse laughed.

"You know it's true, Brother. So does the General know we're coming?"

"No way, Al, it's going to be bad enough without him preparing some stupid responsibility speech for me before I even see him," Edward growled, his eye twitching and his lips curving into a tight frown.

"I'm sure he wouldn't do that, Brother," Alphonse tried, but the glower his brother gave him made him go quiet. Edward opened his mouth, looking like he was about to say something else, when the whistle of the train blew and both of the brothers looked up.

"We're here!" Edward hopped up, excited to get off the train after a four-hour ride. "Come on, Al, let's go!"

"Coming, coming," Alphonse said, smiling a bit again. It was nice to be around his brother's erratic personality after an entire year. Even if he ate more than Ling, Edward two years ago, and Lan Fan _combined._ Still, Alphonse knew his brother was trying his best. When he had asked about this strange diet, Edward had told him about getting stuck with Gluttony's unfortunate appetite (luckily said homunculus didn't seem to be able to contact Edward in any way). Of course, unlike Gluttony Edward was smart enough to monitor how much he ate and stayed far, far away from adding humans to his diet, so Alphonse wasn't too worried.

As the two stepped off of the train, Al and Ed smiled at each other before the two golden-haired boys rushed towards the military's headquarters.

* * *

"Havoc's returned," Riza mentioned, stepping into Roy's office.

Roy glanced up from the rather large pile of paper's that teetered on his desk. "And?" He asked, emotions racing through his eyes.

"I'm sorry, sir, but there's still no report of him," Riza said gently, knowing that her talk with him hadn't completely made his doubts and worries vanish five days ago. She handed Havoc's report to Roy, and walked over to the window. Today it was actually sunny, the sun reflecting off of the many windows in Central. She turned to look at Roy, turning her back to the windows and studying the General, who was thumbing through the two pieces of paper with a thoughtful and slightly annoyed look.

"I can't believe Fullmetal," Roy muttered hotly, trying not to show his worry again after breaking down like he had last week. "He's always been such a nuisance to me and _now_ he decides to go off on his own and vanish? It's like I can still hear him barge in here on some days, screaming insults at me with the ticked off demeanor that always opened with-"

"Hey, Colonel Bastard," An annoyed voice broke in, and Riza instantly pulled out her gun, whipping it to point at the intruder, who was leaning against the now-open window frame. "Glad to see you missed me so much."

Riza's eyes suddenly widened, and she lowered her gun a little. "Edward?" She gasped in shock, staring at the blonde teenage boy standing in front of her.

Roy went still, his smirk gone. He stood up abruptly, staring at the Fullmetal Alchemist. "Fullmetal," he said slowly, carefully, picking his words with deadly precision. "Where the hell have you been?"

"Didn't I tell you? I went to Xing and learned alkahestry." Edward replied, arching on eyebrow.

"For an entire _year?_" Roy asked coldly, suddenly walking forwards and grabbing the shorter male by the shirt and slamming him against the wall. "What the hell did you think we thought about that? Ever since that strange business with Selim Bradley, you vanished for an entire year, without a word! Alphonse wouldn't say anything about you but that you were 'traveling' and looked absolutely _miserable_ whenever I questioned him! You better have a damn good explanation for this one, Fullmetal, or else!"

Edward blinked in surprise, confusion flickering across his face. Roy looked just about as pissed off as he had been when he had figured out who had killed Hughes, but in a different way. Instead of blind rage, something else, something Ed didn't understand, was flickering across Roy's face. Was that... was that _concern_?

"Sorry," Ed muttered, glancing down with a bitter smile. "I had some things to sort out, Mustang."

"Like what? Do you-"

"Roy," Riza said, stepping in and placing a hand on his blue uniform's shoulder. The contact seemed to snap Roy out of his anger, and he relaxed a little, breathing heavily and stepping backwards. Edward rubbed his arms and shot an annoyed look at Roy.

"If you must know," Edward said calmly, brushing past Roy and plopping down on to the couch, facing away from Roy. "I've been dealing with the fact that I've been turned into a homunculus this past year." He said it bluntly, without any emotion, but Roy stiffened. _What?_

"No…" Riza whispered, dropping the gun she had been about to put away. "How did this happen, Edward?" She asked gently, horror clear on her face. Roy looked down, clenching his fists and suddenly unable to speak.

"While I was fighting Selim back on the Promised Day we merged by accident," Edward muttered, shifting. "In Xing we managed to separate ourselves again, but Selim got stuck as a human and I as a homunculus. God really does hate those who disobeys his laws, huh?"

"Oh, Fullmetal…" Roy muttered, his anger suddenly gone. He rushed forwards, pulling Edward into a hug.

"Er… General? What are you doing?" Ed asked, trying to awkwardly get out of Roy's hug.

"You could have asked for my help, you stubborn child," Roy muttered, puling away to look into Ed's eyes. "You know that, right?"

"He means _our_ help," Riza said sternly but with a small smile.

"…oh." Edward said softly, looking down. "But… but I'm not human anymore… I mean, I know Alphonse doesn't care, but other people…" Edward looked up, the sadness shining in his eyes finally showing itself after an entire year of hiding it. He had promised he wouldn't reveal these doubts to anyone, to make sure he stayed strong, but they suddenly spilled over his tongue. "I don't deserve anyone else's kindness when I could kill them by accident!"

Roy's voice hardened and he gently whacked Edward on the head. "Shut it, Fullmetal. I know I've told you that you've had to grow up ever since you've joined the military, but it doesn't mean you can't ask for help, all right? I don't want to loose you." Roy then smiled, straightening up. "After all, who would I annoy then?"

Edward scowled, but his shoulders relaxed and he shrugged. "I don't know. Why should I care about that? But… thanks, General."

Riza turned suddenly, contemplating the door. "We seem to have some guests," she announced, walking over and pulling open one of the doors. Immediately, four men fell inside, tumbling into one huge pile.

"Uh… sir!" Fuery shouted sheepishly, scrambling to his feet and rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"Yo, sorry for intruding…" Breda offered, frowning.

"Chief! I'm so glad you're all right!" Havoc said quickly, standing up.

"Havoc! You're spine is…" Edward said in surprise, blinking in surprise.

"Fixed? Yeah, the General made sure of that, and I couldn't seem to stay away from this job," Havoc said, winking.

"But… is it true?" Falman asked, after a pause. "You're really one of those things?"

"Falman," Roy said sharply, but Edward waved it off.

"No, it's fine. Yeah, it's true," Edward said, shrugging, fine now that he had gotten the load off of his shoulders. "Yeah, I'm a homunculus now. Got a problem with that?"

Roy chuckled. "If any of you do, I would run now," he informed his company, who all quickly said it was fine.

"So what now, Edward?" Fuery asked curiously. "Are you planning on staying in Central, or…?"

"For now, Al and I plan to stay in this city," Ed said, nodding. "But we might start traveling to other countries besides Xing and Amestris soon enough. Who knows, after all, there are many things we can still learn."

"Like how to grow tall?" Quipped Roy, and Ed glowered at him.

"Now you're dead, Bastard General!"

Everyone laughed, and it was only then that Riza looked around. "Hey, Ed… where is Al, anyways?"

"What? Oh, I think he was wandering around here… why?"

"I don't know. It feels strange for him not to be here."

"I'll go look for him, then," Edward said, waving and dashing out of the room. Everyone watched him go, and Falman frowned.

"So he's a homunculus now?"

"..yeah."

"Why do I feel that Chief is just going to get into even more trouble now?"  
"Because he probably is, Havoc."

* * *

Alphonse was officially and utterly lost with a capital L. It had all started with a tiny, calico kitten that had apparently hurt itself, because its poor paw was bleeding everywhere as it limped away from Al. Of course, what Al had done next was obvious; he had chased after the poor thing, determined to get its paw looked at and possibly convince Ed to let him keep it.

The kitten was terrified of him, though, and had vanished into one of the tunnels that had still not been closed off after a year, (soldiers were regularly sent exploring down there to make sure everything was found and destroyed from Father's plans) closely followed by Al.

Inside the tunnels, damp air clung uncomfortably to Al's skin. The boy stopped for a moment, panting, before hearing a soft meow. "Kitty?" Alphonse called out, looking around. "C'mon, I won't hurt you…" Another meow resounded through the tunnels, and Alphonse started wandering around the maze-like underground.

"I wish I had a map, I wasn't with Brother when he explored these tunnels," Alphonse muttered as he got on his hands and knees and started peeking under the pipes to look for the kitten. "This is taking a while, and I don't know if I can find my way back out… ohhh, Brother is normally the impulsive one, and now he's going to yell at me for getting lost over another cat."

Suddenly, Alphonse felt something cut sharply into his palm, and he yelped in pain, sitting up to his knees to examine his palm in the dim light. Blood dripped from it, and it looked like he had come into an encounter with glass. Was any of it inside of his palm? Alphonse studied his palm and then the floor, but there was nothing there except for his blood. "Ow, ow, ow." Alphonse muttered, standing up. Another whimper made him glance around, and he noticed the kitten hiding across the room.

"There, there, you're safe," Alphonse soothed, scooping up the kitten. "Now let's see if we can get out of here and get bandages for both of us, huh?"

The kitten squirmed and meowed, and Alphonse suddenly wobbled, feeling dizzy and sick. "Ergh… Even though it's been a year, my body seems that it can't take this much strenuous activity yet," Al muttered woozily. "I should hurry back."

The boy disappeared into the blackness, the darkness swallowing him whole. What he hadn't known, however, was that he hadn't cut his palm with glass; in fact, it had actually been the fragmented pieces of a broken and seemingly dead Philosopher's Stone, once owned by a homunculus which had died in the tunnels under Central…

TO BE CONTINUED…

* * *

**MUAHAHAHAHA! Did anyone see that ending coming? Yes? No? Definably not? **

**So yeah, there **_**is**_** going to be a sequel, lucky you guys! I should start it maybe in a month or so, give or take a little. After all, I've been working on this for seven weeks straight already and need a little break, haha. I'm hoping to include more of Roy and his Company in the next one, and the main character will be Al with the secondary character as Edward, as opposed to it being the other way around in this one. It's going to be called Green with Envy or something similar to that~**

**Poor Elrics. I just adore throwing angst at them, don't I?**

**So on another note, thank you so much everyone for picking this story to read! At this point, I have had over 1800 views on this story. (._.) That's a bunch, so I would like to thank everyone who reviewed, favorited, followed, or just sat back and read this fanfiction.**

**Erm, that's all I have to say for now. Hopefully I will see all of you guys again soon!**

**Once again, thanks so much for reading!**


End file.
